Pieces
by Efflorescent.Hours
Summary: [KakashixOC] The shinobi world is picking up the pieces after The War with the rise of new clinics specifically treating children's mental health. Enter the 6th Hokage Hatake Kakashi, who crosses paths with serious, kind-hearted Yamanaka Emiri who oversees the clinics and reminds him of every reason he calls himself Hokage.
1. Yamanaka Emiri

**_Pieces_**

A Kakashi Romance

1: Yamanaka Emiri

 _Disclaimer: All rights and reserves to Masashi Kishimoto for the Naruto universe. However, Emiri belongs to me. Story recently changed to a rating of **M**_ **.** I've chosen to change the rating from T to M because this story, after all is said and done, this is an adult story. Also, it will include the heavy topic of mental health both for children and adults (and for some, depending on their sensitivity, it might be a trigger, so be forewarned). This story will also include sex and alcohol. So, continue to read at your own discretion.

* * *

"…And there. All fixed."

"Thank you, nee-chan!" A little boy missing one of his front teeth grinned goofily up at Emiri after she had put a cast on his arm. Emiri smiled and ruffled the boy's dark hair before he ran off out of the hospital.

Emiri smiled as she watched the boy's retreating back. Eventually, her smile fell as she worked on his progress note. Treating the boy's superficial wounds were an easy task Emiri could have done in her sleep. However, it wasn't what she was passionate about. Her passion lied with children and their mental state after the war.

"Hey! Emiri-nee-san!"

Emiri looked up from her paper work to see her younger cousin by a year, Yamanaka Ino, walk into the office. Ino, with her long pale blonde hair and green-blue eyes was the epitome of Yamanaka family traits.

Emiri, on the other hand, had long dark hair that fell to the middle of her back, a trait she had inherited from her Nara clan mother. Her eyes though, were the beautiful green that most Yamanaka clan members had. Also, where Ino chose to wear purple, Emiri dressed in royal blues and blacks.

"I was just finishing up this progress note," Emiri said, signing her name at the end of the note. She shuffled the papers together and put it into a file that she would drop off at the front desk as they left.

"Good," said Ino. "I had begun to think you'd forgotten about our meeting with the Hokage today."

"Would I ever forget something so important?" Emiri quirked an eyebrow.

"No," Ino relented, she then put a hand on her hip. "I just don't want to defend this proposal on my own."

Emiri's eyes softened. Gently, she touched Ino's shoulder and offered an encouraging smile. "This is important to me too, Ino-chan. Let's go meet the Sixth Hokage."

 **X**

"—That's why I want to start a children's hospital focused on mental health. Finally, alongside my cousin Emiri, Haruno Sakura will also be assisting me on this project." Ino folded her hands together and smiled, obviously proud of her defense.

Emiri nodded proudly—Ino hardly needed her for the meeting at all.

But behind the mask, the Sixth Hokage, Hatake Kakashi, was hard to read. His hands were folded in front of him, and he silently tapped a finger in thought.

"It all sounds very well thought out," Kakashi complimented. "However, I am wary about your lack of overall experience to head such a major project."

"L-lack of experience," Ino sputtered. "I was _in that war with you and everyone else_!" Ino slammed a fist down on the table angrily.

"Calm down, Ino," Emiri said, her voice gentle, but stern.

Kakashi turned his lazy stare to the young woman beside Ino—definitely not for the first time during their entire meeting, not that Emiri noticed.

"Hokaga-sama, I see your perspective, but I also see Ino's perspective as well." Emiri diplomatically stated. "That is why, while this is primarily Ino's project, it will begin with ownership through the Yamanaka family and Haruno Sakura and will eventually branch out to accept the help of those trained specifically for mental health and pediatrics. Ino will be owner in name, as will I. I will be one of the head specialists in training medical-nin on pediatrics and mental health."

"You're young too," Kakashi deadpanned.

"But I have more than five years of experience. Check my files, Hokage-sama."

"I think I will," said Kakashi. Immediately on his right, one of his assistants produced Yamanaka Emiri's file.

Ino slowly sat down, her smug smile returning as she listened to Emiri debate in her favor. "Emiri was promoted to jounin at fourteen, Kakashi—er, Hokage-sama," said Ino. "She spent most of her time in the interrogation and tracking fields and was primarily sent on A-Rank and S-Rank missions that specialized in child-welfare situations, inter-village affairs, and of course, tracking and interrogation."

Kakashi closed Emiri's file without reading much; Ino had essentially summarized everything. He folded his hands in front of him once again, glancing at the cousins. Finally, he nodded.

"Fine. I will allot you with a stipend for you to get your practice started, and I will expect regular check-ins."

"Thank you, Hokage-sama!" Ino squealed excitedly.

"Specifically," said Kakashi, as Emiri and Ino rose to leave the Hokage's office, "I expect regular check-ins from Emiri-san."

"Me?" Emiri raised a dark eyebrow. "Why me?"

"Because," said Kakashi, his onyx eyes fixed lazily on Emiri in a way that got under her skin in strange ways. Though his tone was lazy, Emiri could detect the subtle challenge as he said, "you're the expert, aren't you?"

* * *

 **Author's Note: oops. Another KakashixOC! Here we go! Also, if you need a little more prompting...Emiri would be approximately 21 where Kakashi is 33 (putting Kakashi's students at 19-20). If that's weird, oh well!**

 **Thanks for reading!**

 **Your reviews are love!**

 **x**


	2. A Proposition

_oOo_

 ** _Pieces_**

A Kakashi Romance

2: A Proposition

* * *

Emiri ran to her meeting with the Hokage. With Sakura and Ino both away on missions, running the children's clinic was stressful for one person.

Running up the stairs, Emiri paused outside of the Hokage's office to control her breathing so it didn't look like she had run halfway across the village. Standing up straight, she fixed her the long strands of hair that framed her face and adjusted her short black and blue kimono. Finally, she knocked on the door.

"Come in."

Emiri pushed the door open, entered the room, and closed it behind her. Kakashi sat behind the large wooden desk, dressed in black with his Hokage robe and hat hanging on a hook nearby, his pen scratching across paper as he seemed lost in his work.

Quietly, Emiri took a seat at the chair across from him—the first time she'd sat down in over ten hours. She refrained from moaning in relief as she let her muscles rest. She then smiled sheepishly at Kakashi. "Sorry I'm late."

Kakashi stopped writing and glanced up at Emiri. His eyes were expressionless, and she wondered if his face changed beneath the mask.

"That really is no problem," Kakashi said with a chuckle. "I'm rarely on time."

"So I've heard," Emiri said dryly. If there was anything she hated, it was being late. And tomatoes. She hated tomatoes too.

That earned another laugh from Kakashi, and Emiri found that she had to smile too. She had heard stories of the famous Hatake Kakashi, but she had never interacted with him until he had become Hokage, and from what she has seen of him—he was someone who managed to put people at ease while he still retained mystery and subtle prestige.

"So," said Kakashi, sitting up straight, folding his arms on the table. "Tell me about the children's clinic. It's been a month since Ino's proposal received funding."

"Blossoming," Emiri smiled. "Ino and Sakura have done excellent work. Unfortunately they've both been away on missions these past few days so I've been managing our clinic, as well as Sunagakure's, on my own, so that has been tricky, but otherwise, we're attempting to meet a very large need."

Kakashi nodded once and closed his eyes in a way that led Emiri believe he smiled beneath his mask. "That is excellent to hear. I, however, have a proposition for you, and it seems it may have come at a bad time." Kakashi chuckled lightly.

Emiri frowned and narrowed her green eyes at him. "What proposition, Hokage-sama," she made sure her tone conveyed wariness toward the man.

"Kirigakure has heard of the clinics and expressed interest in starting one of their own. Therefore, I want to offer that to you, Sakura, and Ino and see if you are willing to expand your visions further."

Emiri's eyes widened fractionally as she sat up straighter. "I'm sure Ino and Sakura would agree to it, and when they return from their missions I will inform them of this."

"Excellent," said Kakashi. "Is there anything else?" He was not dismissing her in a rude manner, Emiri observed the large stack of papers that piled on his desk, and she knew he was a busy man.

Instead, Emiri nodded and stood, taking a brief moment to stretch her tired muscles. As she reached for the ceiling, she became acutely aware of the way her Hokage's onyx eyes fixed on the curves of her waist and hips, ivory skin visible beneath the slit of her royal blue kimono top. Immediately she pulled her arms down, one arm crossed over her body casually—but shyly.

"I think that is all, Hokage-sama," said Emiri as she turned to leave. She then paused by the wooden door of his office, half in and half out.

"Hokage-sama?"

"Hmm?"

"Come visit the clinic," Emiri encouraged. "When you get the chance."

"Emiri, are you going back to the clinic now?"

"Yes. It's lunch time, and I usually try to have lunch with the younger ones a few times a week."

Emiri was surprised when Kakashi rose from his seat and reached for his Hokage robe and hat. "I have some time now. Lead the way."

* * *

 **Author's Note: OKAY! I find the need to say-the idea of the children's clinic is not fully mine. SPOILER ALERT! But not really since it's part of an Arc that has not been published. Therefore, I only know of the clinic run by Ino and Sakura in name, and I'm creating a story around the idea. Anyway, I felt the need to clarify this because I've received a lot of positive feedback about it. I care deeply about mental health, so naturally, I gravitated toward a story that mentioned it.**

 **Thanks for reading!**

 **Your reviews are love!**

 **x**


	3. Emiri's Heart

_oOo_

 ** _Pieces_**

A Kakashi Romance

3\. Emiri's Heart

* * *

"Emiri-senpai! Oh, Hokage-sama!" Emiri and Kakashi were greeted with bows by the medical-nin who noticed them walk in together.

Emiri greeted her team of specialists that she had personally and extensively trained the past month. "Ryo-san," she greeted her lead specialist who showed the most progress in the short amount of time, "The Hokage is taking a tour of our clinic today. Do you have a moment to show him the site?"

"Yes, Emiri-senpai," said Ryo as he rounded the corner of the front desk.

"Ryo-san is one of the best we have on location," Emiri beamed at Kakashi. "He will give you an excellent tour."

"Er, thank you, Emiri," said Kakashi, his eyes widened fractionally. He expected a tour with the young woman, not her assistant.

Kakashi watched as Emiri walked away, greeting staff as she passed. She was quite popular, Kakashi realized, , unsure of how a young woman like her could have slipped his notice—even though she was a year older than his now grown-up students.

"Ready, Hokage-sama," asked Ryo.

Kakashi nodded and allowed the eager young man to show him around. The clinic was small, but well organized. In one part of the hospital, several medical experts were seen treating physical injuries of Academy students. In another part of the clinic, the hospital was divided into section. In a large room, Kakashi saw several young kids sitting in a circle with two staff in what appeared to be group therapy.

In another wing of the hospital there were several smaller rooms. Two were currently occupied.

"We do group therapy and individual therapy," Ryo explained as they paused outside one of the room. Inside, there was a kid who looked to be about eleven years old with his eyes closed and a staff member holding her glowing green hand over his forehead.

"She is assessing his memories to understand how we can provide the best care."

Finally, their tour ended at a large, outdoor terrace.

"Emiri-senpaaaaaiii! Look at me!"

"Hiroko! Chopsticks are _not_ kunai!"

Kakashi chuckled behind his mask when he saw Emiri sitting on the ground with a handful of children that looked to be under six years old.

"Isamu, be careful!" Emiri held up her bowl of rice as a five-year-old boy fell onto her lap, laughing hard.

Emiri gave the boy a stern look, but it quickly faded as she laughed as well, a sound like bells in the wind, Kakashi noted. She put her bowl aside and lifted the boy from her lap. Emiri glanced up at that moment and noticed Kakashi and Ryo. Gracefully she stood and brushed the dirt from the seat of her shorts.

"Ryo-san will you supervise them as I talk with Kakashi-sama?"

"Yes, Emiri-senpai." Ryo grinned broadly as he joined the children and the children protested at Emiri's leaving, but rejoiced for Ryo joining them.

Kakashi and Emiri started to walk away when Emiri stumbled. Reflexively, Kakashi reached out an arm to steady her. He looked down to see the little boy Emiri identified as Isamu hugging tightly to Emiri's knees.

Emiri glanced at Kakashi's hand on her upper arm, and Kakashi removed it. Emiri then knelt to the ground to be eye-level with Isamu.

Isamu scowled beneath his messy black hair and dark eyes. "Emiri-nee-san, don't go."

"I'm only going to have a conversation with the Hokage-sama. Have you met him before, Isamu?"

Isamu continued to scowl as he looked up at Kakashi. "Why do you where a mask?"

"Isamu, that isn't polite."

"It's fine, Emiri," Kakashi chuckled before he crouched down as well. "Because, Isamu, it makes me look cool." Kakashi closed his eyes as he smiled through his mask.

"You're weird!" Isamu exclaimed and clung to Emiri once more.

"Isamu…" Emiri sighed. She eventually pushed the little boy off of her and ruffled his hair. "Go finish lunch and I will be back later, okay?"

"Isamu, you have good tracking ability," Kakashi complimented the small boy. "I almost didn't hear you come."

Isamu glanced warily at Kakashi once more before he ran away to Ryo and the other children.

Emiri smiled faintly as both she and Kakashi stood.

Wordlessly, Kakashi followed Emiri to the front of the clinic where there was a bench in front. Emiri sat first and pat the seat beside her for Kakashi to sit. Kakashi removed his hat and sat beside the young woman, running a hand through his silvery hair.

"Sorry about Isamu," said Emiri, wincing slightly. "He's a sweet boy, he just…"

"He lost everything in the war," Kakashi supplied, and Emiri simply nodded.

"I hoped for his sake that he came from a large clan, but when I looked into his personal history I was disappointed. His dad was from Kirigakure, and you know about their brutal traditions for students—so, there was no family on dad's side, and mom was a Konoha shinobi. She had lost her family in the previous war. He literally had no one left." Emiri sighed heavily. "We serve a lot of orphans here, and we have a portion of the clinic that goes to housing them, but it's not enough. These kids need family. Isamu…"

Kakashi remained silent. He watched as the corners of Emiri's red lips turned up in the slightest of smiles.

"When I found Isamu, he was three years old, and hiding by himself in a tree, and he didn't talk for six months after the war. We took care of him in the hospital before we started the clinic, and I would visit him every day and read him a story. One day as I was leaving he just grabbed my hand and looked at me with such big eyes and asked for another story." Emiri then chuckled. "It's kind of sad isn't it? Somehow, I let down my guard and my feelings have interfered with my mission. Don't let this fool you, Hokage-sama. I was among the top of my class, and I can be professional."

"It's not a weakness to care for others, Emiri."

Emiri turned her green eyes on Kakashi at that moment, and she silently regarded him, as if trying to understand exactly what he was all about. Kakashi was used to that, women, men, _anyone_ , really, staring at him to pick him apart both with good and bad intentions.

While Emiri openly regarded him, Kakashi did the same to her. Every time he saw her, she had her dark hair down and over her shoulder, the tips of her hair ending just under her breasts. Her long-sleeved kimono dress fell to her upper thighs and had slits on either side that went all the way to her waist where her porcelain skin would occasionally peek out above her black shorts. She was, Kakashi noted, very beautiful.

And so much younger than him.

"Hey! Emiri! Kakashi-sensei!"

Kakashi and Emiri looked away from each other, as if broken by a spell. They turned to see Ino and Sakura walking toward them, both slightly disheveled.

"You're both back at the same time," Emiri observed.

"Yeah," said Sakura. "Our missions ended up being connected by a single rogue shinobi."

Ino and Sakura paused in front of Kakashi and Emiri. Ino narrowed her gaze and crossed her arms. She leaned forward and glanced at Kakashi and Emiri. "Hmm, are you two on a date?"

"Absolutely not!" Emiri jumped to her feet, her face flushed. "Kakashi-sama came by to see the clinic and also explain that Kirigakure wants to open a clinic there too."

"That's not romantic at all," Ino sighed.

"Stop, Ino."

Kakashi glanced up at Emiri when he noticed the hardness in her tone. Was the idea of a date with him really that horrible? But the young woman now had a far away look in her eyes. Kakashi then glanced at Ino, and Ino's teasing smile fell.

"Emiri-nee-san, I'm sorry. I—"

"It's fine, Ino." Emiri cut her off. She then sighed. "I need to go back to the children. Let's talk about this tomorrow."

Emiri paused and gave Kakashi the slightest of bows before she left, wordlessly.

"Don't worry, Ino," said Sakura, touching her friend's shoulder gently.

"It's been two years," said Ino.

Kakashi glanced at the girls, unsure of what they were referring to—the war? That was two years ago. "Do I need to know?" he finally asked.

Sakura glanced at Kakashi, her emerald green eyes sad. "Emiri was engaged to Hyuuga Neji."

"Their wedding was set for three weeks after the end of the war." Tears filled the corners of Ino's eyes. "Emiri had always been a rather serious type, but she was so much more fun before The War. I thought in time she would be okay again, but that's not the case. All she does is work."

Kakashi understood. He thought of the Emiri and her easy smile—he could almost imagine it: a kind-hearted girl with a dry sense of humor before the war, a girl who loved Hyuuga Neji.

With a sigh, Kakashi stood and adjusted the Hokage hat on his head, and glanced at the two girls. "Report to me tomorrow about your missions. Go get some rest."

"Yes, Kakashi-sensei," the girls answered in unison as Kakashi walked away.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Expect Wednesdays to be the days "Pieces" is updated! :)**

 **Thanks for reading!**

 **Your reviews are love!**

 **x**


	4. Back

_oOo_

 ** _Pieces_**

A Kakashi Romance

4\. Back

* * *

Three days later, Emiri joined Sakura and Ino who were already meeting with the Hoakge in his office. Emiri could just make out Sakura's voice, muffled by the heavy wooden door, before she knocked and quietly entered.

She noticed Kakashi's dark eyes casually flick up to acknowledge her as Sakura debriefed about the success of her mission. Emiri gave her Hokage a quick bow as she shut the door. In front of his desk were three chairs—two of which were occupied by Ino and Sakura. Emiri soundlessly slid into the empty chair beside Ino.

"While in Suna, I checked-in on the status of our clinic there," said Sakura, after she finished relaying the story of her successful mission. "Everything is fully functioning. The doctors and staff are excellent. The children that are still there when we first launched the clinic seem to be slowly and steadily improving."

"That's good to hear," Emiri voiced, her smile genuine when she thought of the kids she had met three weeks ago.

Ino and Kakashi nodded in agreement.

"We're going to switch gears a little now that Emiri is here." Kakashi announced as he shuffled a stack of papers across his desk. From one of the many stacks of files that surrounded him, he extracted a thin, tan file and put it in front of him.

"While you were away, I received a request from Kirigakure to open a children's clinic there. Emiri expressed that the three of you would be willing to expand."

"I believe we have the man power to do it," said Emiri, glancing at her cousin and at Sakura. "Similar to Suna, we can meet with doctors over at Kiri, and now that we have a fully functional team, we can send our better trained staff in our place to help train the medics there as needed."

"I agree," Ino said with a nod, her green eyes ambitiously bright.

"Maybe that can be the clinic that you're in charge of," Sakura suggested. It was unwritten agreement that, as it was Ino's idea, the business and logistics of the children's clinic in Konoha was primarily Ino's. Their first expansion in Suna belonged to Sakura as she had a strong relationship with the medics there. Although Emiri chose to work behind the scenes, it would only make sense if the Kiri clinic became her project.

"I can manage that," said Emiri. Already her mind raced with the possibilities of who she would send from Konoha to help build up Kiri's children's clinic.

Kakashi glanced at the three young women. "So it's settled," he said, opening the file in front of him and extracting a pen. "I can inform the Mizukage of a new children's clinic?"

Emiri, Sakura, and Ino glanced at each other, wordlessly coming to the same conclusion.

Emiri glanced at Kakashi, surprised to find that his gaze on her, expectantly. "Yes, Hokage-sama. We'll expand into Kirigakure."

"How soon can we go?" Emiri then asked Ino and Sakura as Kakashi wrote. "I can be ready by the end of the week."

Ino and Sakura glanced at each other.

"I don't think I can," Sakura said, her voice apologetic.

"Me neither," said Ino.

Emiri raised an eyebrow in question.

"Hinata needs help planning her wedding," Sakura smiled. "Naruto is absolutely useless. If it were up to him instant ramen would be served, and Hinata is so sweet that she won't say no, but she's clearly distressed. So, I promised I would help her plan as soon as I got back from the mission."

"Same," Ino agreed. "We're doing the flowers for the wedding as well. And I also have a date this weekend with Sai."

In spite of Ino's confident voice, a light blush rose on her pale cheeks—Ino and Sai had started dating soon after they returned from Sunagakure after launching the clinic. To Emiri, Ino had always been the happy type, but her recent relationship with Sai changed the young woman—though always lovely, Ino became _radiant_.

A sharp pain beat in Emiri's chest at the mention of weddings and relationships. She knew if she closed her eyes, Neji would appear in her mind, as clear as day, as though he was only taking a day of rest after a long mission instead of being a name on the KIA stones.

"I understand," Emiri said, her voice soft. She offered her friend and her cousin a closed-eyed smile. "I'm doing Hinata's make-up and hair for the wedding, and we went over those plans while the both of you were away. So you need to do what you have to."

When she opened her eyes, Emiri saw it _again_. The look her family and her friends gave her that sent another dull pain through her heart and chest. Ino and Sakura had that look now.

It was a look of uncertain pity—sadness and pity for the girl who lost her fiancée to a horrible war. After The War, Emiri barely spoke and barely ate. She had lost weight, and she had stopped wearing any form of make-up. Even on missions, Emiri had always made it a point to swipe a red lipstick across her lips. Because, even when she wasn't feeling it, it mattered to her that her enemies and her comrades believed she could fight another day.

After The War and Neji's death, she alternated her days of solitude by spending time in her room with the blinds shut, or if she had energy she was at Neji's grave. One day she even went to the training field where she first kissed Neji—and that was a mistake because she broke down crying and had to be escorted home after Ino found her in the middle of the night, still crying.

It had been two years since it all happened, and it took a lot of hard effort to regain the muscle she had lost when she stopped training and going missions, and feeling okay enough to start wearing red lipstick again. Still, there wasn't a day that passed in which she thought of all the friends and family she had lost, the terrible things she had seen, and the boy she loved more than anything.

In those two years, she had come to recognize the looks of pity, because while she still struggled, it seemed everyone around her wanted to know when she would get better. But after such tragedies, broken pieces rarely came back together as quickly as they seemed to come apart. Even if they did, the pieces hardly fit as together as perfectly as they used to.

"Emiri."

Emiri shook her head, sharking away the familiar sinking feeling to answer Kakashi. She took a breath; she didn't realize she had been holding it while she was lost in her thoughts.

Looking at Kakashi in this moment was like a breath of fresh air. Where Sakura and Ino gave her that sad look, Kakashi's eyes remained the same—stable and unchanging-like something Emiri could walk toward and know it would keep her up before she went under.

"If you can be ready to go by the end of the week, and if it is alright with Sakura and Ino, I can assign someone to accompany you on your mission."

"Thank you, Kakashi-sama," sad Emiri. She glanced at Ino and Sakura and nodded. "I will report back to you both—and you Hokage-sama—about the specific needs and details from Kirigakure."

At the end of the meeting, the three kunoichi rose, bowed to Kakashi, and left, agreeing to get lunch at the local Korean BBQ place.

Once there, the three sipped their green tea in silence.

"Is it okay that I go without you two," asked Emiri. Her face remained neutral, but on the inside she squirmed at the tenseness between the three of them,

"Oh it's completely fine," said Sakura. "I checked-in on Suna without the two of you. So it's no trouble at all."

"Emiri-nee-san, this is your first mission since…"

"Since Neji died." Emiri filled in, and Ino looked down.

"I know, nee-chan," Emiri said. Quietly, she covered the girl's hand, and Ino's eyes filled with tears. Sakura quietly excused herself to give the cousins a moment alone.

Then Emiri did something surprising to Ino. She laughed pleasantly, a sound Ino rarely heard outside of the times she was with the children at the clinic. "Nee-chan, look at you worrying about me, it's my job to take care of _you_."

Ino pouted, and Emiri laughed again and passed Ino a napkin to dab at her eyes.

"Ino, you forget I am a Yamanaka too. Maybe I'm like the first flower after the snowy season, hm? It takes a lot of strength to break through the icy ground to tell people spring is coming. For me, it just happened to be snowing for a very long time."

That seemed to make Ino cry harder and Emiri rolled her eyes lovingly. For a minute, it felt like how it felt before The War—Emiri, ever pragmatic, professional, and observant—a trait she inherited from the Nara clan—protecting her younger cousin and her dramatic feelings.

It was enough to give Emiri a slight mood boost that perhaps, she can be better one day too. "I'm as strong as I used to be, if not stronger. So it's time to get back out there." Finally Emiri let go of her cousin's hand with a squeeze.

"I've missed you, Emiri-nee-san," said Ino, wiping at her eyes.

Emiri closed her eyes briefly to keep from flinching. _I missed me too_.

"I'm still me, Ino-nee-chan," Emiri smiled as Sakura came back. "But, thank you for taking care of me when I couldn't."

The air seemed to be a lot more amicable after that as the three laughed and talked about wedding plans for Hinata and made fun of Ino and her upcoming date with Sai. All the while, Emiri, though she interacted and joked, she grew more steadily excited and nervous for the upcoming mission.

The end of the week couldn't come quick enough.

* * *

 **Author's Note: A COUPLE THOUGHTS!**

 **1\. This story rating will be changing to "M". Because I will be toping about mature issues such as mental health, choice, sex, etc. Whilst I hope the majority of my readers can handle such content (and I'm quite sure you can), I'm sure, for safety, it's better to up the rating. If anything, I wished FF offered a "T+" rating. As such, I will be updating chapter 1 just to reflect the ratings and warnings.  
2\. Any Japanese speakers? I'm struggling with honorifics, and I'm hoping you can help me. As I add "nee-chan" to Emiri's name, I add it becaue I imagine Isamu calling Emiri "[big] sis/sissy Emiri" and Ino referring to Emiri as "Sissiy Emiri" as well. Even if the latter are cousins. If I need to change that, someone please feel free to let me know. :)**

 **Thanks for reading!**

 **Your reviews are love!**

 **x**


	5. The Road

**_Pieces_**

A Kakashi Romance

5: The Road

* * *

"Emiri-nee-chan don't go."

"I have to go, Isamu. I have a mission." Emiri knelt on the ground, trying hard to extract little Isamu from her arms, but the boy had a grip like iron.

Finally Isamu pulled back, his young face scrunched as he stared at Emiri. "You don't go on missions," he complained.

"Sure I do," said Emiri. She then flexed her lithe, toned arm. "See? I'm very strong."

Isamu stared at her bicep dubiously before he frowned again. "Can I go?"

"Isamu…" Emiri sighed as she got to her feet. "Your mission is to stay here and help Ryo-san take care of everyone, okay? And I will be back in a week and I will have lunch with all of you again."

Isamu folded his arms over his chest, his frown deepened before his eyes brimmed with tears and he turned and ran away. Emiri frowned, that little boy had stolen such a big part of her heart. Adjusting her backpack, straps, Emiri left the children's clinic; there was one more stop she had to make before she met her mission companion at the entrance gates.

Emiri, lost in thought, walked through the town to a less populated area—the memorial site. Passing the KIA stone at the entrance, she walked through the rows of names, until she found the one she wanted.

HYUGGA NEJI.

Emiri stopped in front of his grave and put her backpack down. Her backpack was filled with essential supplies and extra shinobi tools that made it annoying to carry. Reverently, Emiri knelt in front of Neji's headstone.

She tucked her hair behind her ear and smiled slightly. "Hello, Neji," Emiri started, gently running her fingertips over his stone, the engraved etching of his name familiar to the touch. "I'm going on my first mission in a while. Ino, Sakura, and I started up a children's clinic and it's expanding to Kirigakure so that's where I'm going. Ino and Sakura won't be able to accompany me, and the Hokage promised me he'd find someone to go. Of course, my first choice is always you, but if I can't have you, then maybe Shikamaru would do, don't you think? He's my cousin, so he knows how I fight if that will be necessary, but he's probably on some other liaison mission with Suna. Oh, Tenten would be nice too, she's strong and diplomatic."

The wind blew and Emiri frowned as the breeze ruffled her hair and the grass around her. Carefully, she placed the tips of her fingers on one hand to her lips before touching those fingers to Neji's headstone. With a sad smile, she rose gracefully to her feet and adjusted the belt around her hips. The belt held four important things: her two short swords with adjustable black leather straps on the hilts, and at the small of her back, her tool bag that held medic supplies as well as any extra tools she might need. Finally, looped through her belt on her left hip, was Neji's handband. At the time of their engagement, they had exchanged headbands at her request.

Emiri hoisted her backpack onto her shoulders, and she was ready to go. "Watch over me, okay Neji?"

As she left his grave site, Emiri passed the KIA stones once again, this time, there was someone standing there.

"Kakashi-sama!"

Kakashi looked up when he heard his name called. He was not dressed in his Hokage robe and hat, but in his black outfit with his gray flak jacket and a backpack.

"Emiri," Kakashi responded with equal surprise. He seemed to take in her appearance—her short, dark blue kimono dress with long sleeves, and to the black compression shorts that showed beneath the slits of her dress that started at her waist.

"I was just on my way to the village gates," said Emiri—she had given herself ample time to arrive five minutes early to the designated meeting spot. "Kakashi-sama, are you able to tell me who you found to accompany me on my mission?"

Kakashi turned to face her, his onyx eyes aloof. "That would be me," he said. "I'm going with you to Kirigakure."

" _You_?!" Emiri's mouth fell open. "B-but why?"

"Don't get too excited now," Kakashi dryly responded to Emiri's shock.

"No! I'm sorry!" Emiri took a deep breath and puffed out a sigh. "That's not what I meant. I mean…." This wasn't going well, Emiri quietly mused as she pulled her long hair over her shoulder, believing she managed to offend her Hokage. "I just meant, it's a simple diplomatic mission. And you're the Hokage, isn't your presence a bit extreme?"

Nope, Emiri decided, that wasn't any better either.

To her surprise, Kakashi chuckled amicably, seeming unruffled by her sputtering.

"It just so happens I haven't been to Kirigakure in some time, and I am due for a visit, so I figured why not kill two birds with one stone?" Kakashi fully turned away from the KIA stones to regard Emiri. He drew one hand from a pocket and help up two fingers. "There is a second point."

Emiri heard the humor leave Kakashi's voice, and she had a strong feeling she wouldn't particularly like his second point. "What's the second thing?"

"This is your first mission in two years, Emiri." Kakashi said, his eyes carefully watching her.

"So?" Emiri felt all of her guards go up. "I took time off from missions, but if you look back through my record, I responded to every domestic emergency response when all shinobi were summoned in the course of the two years."

"That is true," Kakashi admitted. "However, the Elders are suspicious of your inactivity following The War."

"The Elders? Why do they care?" Emiri new her response was petulant and childish, and she didn't care. "What matters now is that I'm ready for this mission."

Kakashi remained silent, and Emiri laughed bitterly, incredulously.

"The Elders are worried about my mental state because I _chose_ to step down from missions for a while," Emiri spat. "They're sending you to watch over me to make sure…make sure what? I don't have a break down and embarrass Konoha?" Emiri had her hands tightly clenched into fists, her nails drawing up red crescents of blood.

"If you are successful during this mission, you'll never have to worry about the Elders suspicions again," Kakashi promised.

Emiri narrowed her eyes at the man and bit down on her tongue to keep from responding. Instead, she turned on her heel and stalked away from him toward the village gates, barely hearing whether or not Kakashi followed.

 **X**

It took at least an hour before Emiri's anger and shame cooled while she ignored the silvery-haired man who walked in silence beside her.

"Isn't it an issue for you to be away from the office for a week," Emiri finally asked. The mission would last at least a week. If things went smoothly, it would take at least two days to travel from Konoha to Kiri, at least two days to meet with the necessary medical parties at Kiri, and a two day journey back.

"Hm," Kakashi murmured. He glanced at Emiri before he glanced at the sky. "It's a welcome break to get away from the paperwork," he answered. "And I trust your cousin Shikamaru will take care of things while I'm away."

For some reason it startled Emiri when Kakashi demonstrated knowledge of her family. She wondered what else her Hokage knew about her. Suddenly, she felt at a disadvantage—he seemed to know quite a bit about her, and she knew little about him aside from rumors

"You put a lot of faith in him," Emiri smiled, thinking of her cousin's lax attitude and penchant for putting off responsibilities as much as possible.

"I have a lot of faith in my comrades."

Emiri tore her eyes from the dirt road ahead of her to look at Kakashi. Something in his tone made her believe he was talking about more than just confidence in Shikamaru's abilities.

"Sakura told me that when she was your student, the only way you passed her team was by a strong demonstration of teamwork." Emiri offered the tiniest of smiles. "I can see how that desire is demonstrated through your work as a Hokage."

Emiri noted the subtle ways in which Kakashi's eyes widened at her kind words. His eyes then closed in a way that Emiri had come to realize was a smile beneath his mask.

"Thank you, Emiri."

The wind blew, and Emiri narrowed her eyes for the third time in the past hour. They were being followed, and she wondered if Kakashi felt it too. Emiri quietly scanned the area around her; forest lined the dirt road she and Kakashi travelled. If someone was following them, they'd have plenty of places to hide.

Emiri pushed her hearing out further and into a range that most civilians couldn't hear unless they were trained. As she did so, she focused on the presence she felt and listened.

About 300 meters up, she heard a slight rustle in the trees on the left of the road. While Kakashi and Emiri continued to walk forward, the presence seemed to stay where it was. When they were close enough, Emiri dashed forward without warning and pinned a body against the trunk of a tree.

A second later, Kakashi was at her side. When he saw who Emiri had pinned, he raised an eyebrow. "Well this is interesting."

"Emiri-san!"

Emiri looked into the wide, dark eyes of little Isamu who looked up at her fearfully.

"Isamu! What are you doing?" Emiri shook the little boy's shoulder once, not to hurt him, but to emphasize that his actions weren't wise.

"I wanted to go on the mission too." Isamu's eyes filled with tears.

"Isamu…" Emiri sighed as she rose to her feet. She put her hands on her hips and looked up at Kakashi.

"What do you suggest we do? We're already more than an hour out from Konoha, and I would hate to backtrack."

"It's up to you, Emiri," said Kakashi with a casual shrug of his shoulders. "This is your mission."

"And you are absolutely no help," Emiri sighed, as she pressed her fingers to her forehead and shook her head.

"Are you taking me back?" Isamu watched as Emiri frowned slightly.

"No," Emiri compromised. "That would be too much of a hassle." Reaching into the tool bag at the small of her back, Emiri extracted a pen and a small roll of parchment.

Quickly she scribbled a note on the parchment before rolling it back up. "I'm just going to send a message to the clinic. If they realize Isamu is gone, and they should, they'll be turning the village inside out looking for him." Emiri then held the small scroll between her teeth as she did four quick hand signs and tossed the scroll into the air. Once in the air, it poofed into a cloud of smoke and disappeared.

"That's so cool, Emiri-san, what is that?" Isamu asked excitedly.

"A summoning scroll." Emiri explained. She raised an eyebrow at him. "Perhaps the Ninja Academy is something we should consider for you."

"Yeah!"

Emiri smiled at the boy before she glanced at Kakashi. "Ready to continue?"

"Lead the way," Kakashi consented, gesturing in the direction they planned on going.

Emiri rolled her pale green eyes and smile at her Hokage. As she passed him, she touched the wrist of his outstretched arm, and lightly, teasingly, pushed it away.

Kakashi's eyebrows rose at Emiri's touch, but he said nothing as he followed Emiri with his hands in his pockets.

Emiri breathed out a sigh as Isamu reached for her hand. When she looked down, Isamu smiled up at her.

All the while, Emiri thought of her physical contact with Kakashi. It had been a while since she used a telepathic jutsu, and she hoped he got her two-word telepathy: trust me.

"I'm surprised you didn't bring anything with you," Emiri said to Isamu a mile later.

"No, I followed you as fast as I could."

"You were very fast," Emiri agreed, proudly. "It also seems like you've been practicing stealth, just like I taught you."

"Yeah," Isamu said with a happy smile. "I have been, Emiri-san!"

"Good work, Isamu." Emiri ruffled the boy's hair—and at last minute, she gripped it hard and pulled her to him, simultaneously unsheathing a kunai and holding the tip to his neck.

Isamu screamed. "Emiri-san!"

"Drop the act and reveal yourself," Emiri hissed.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Ahh! Thanks for answering my question about honorifics, friends! You guys are the best readers! :)**

 **Thanks for reading!**

 **Your reviews are love!**

 **x**


	6. Fight and Defend

**_Pieces_**

A Kakashi Romance

6: Fight and Defend

* * *

"Emiri-san," The little boy in Emiri's arms cried at her rough touch. That's when she heard the scream.

"EMIRI-NEE-CHAN!"

Both she and Kakashi whirled around, Emiri turned the boy in her arms with her, as they looked to the trees behind them.

There a masked man in a black cloak was holding the real Isamu who looked grimy with dirt and absolutely terrified.

"Nee-chan!" The boy screamed again.

Emiri looked down at the imposter in her arms. She yanked at his hair once more. With a wince, the Isamu-imposter brought his hands together to release the jutsu. Immediately, Emiri and Kakashi jumped back. In a single, fluid motion, Emiri sheathed her kunai and drew one of her short swords at her waist and held it defensively in front of her.

When the smoke cleared from the jutsu, she was looking into the dark eyes of another masked man in black.

Quickly, Emiri lunged forward and slashed at the man. He seemed to anticipate her, and dodged the attack, joining his companion in the tree tops.

"Let the boy go!" Emiri demanded, her vision tunneling on the small, whimpering boy.

"Emiri." Kakashi's voice was a low demand. She jerked her head in his direction, her pale green eyes wide. "Stay calm. Use your head."

Emiri closed her eyes, drew a breath, and opened them again. When she looked at the men, she noticed each man had a metal plate on their right arms with Hidden Mist insignias.

"I'm impressed that you saw through my jutsu. Just looking at you, I wasn't expecting much. You seem like the type of woman to care more about her appearance than her mission." said one of the masked me who impersonated as Isamu. "How long did it take you to realize I wasn't the boy?"

"Immediately," Emiri answered calmly. "Your transformation was faulty, but, even you must admit, appearances can be deceiving." The man narrowed his eyes at her, and Emiri found the courage to smile as she noted she had bruised the man's pride.

"Watch it girl, or else I will harm this boy," the man said as he drew a kunai in front of Isamu's face while his partner still held fast to him. Isamu let out a weak cry.

"My question is," asked Kakashi, "what could you possibly want with a little boy? Especially one that isn't even trained in the shinobi arts?"

"Hatake Kakashi, Sixth Hokage, and the famous Copy Ninja," the man holding Isamu sneered. "Do you know what this little boy's last name is?"

Kakashi glanced at Emiri. He did not know.

"Munashi," Emiri supplied, and Kakashi's bored eyes widened fractionally. "Why does that matter?" She asked when she noticed Kakashi's expression.

"Munashi was one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist," Kakashi supplied.

"This boy is Jinpachi Munashi's nephew—his father was Jinpachi's younger brother. This boy has Kirigakure blood in his veins. As a Kirigakure citizen, we have every right to take him," said the masked man who held Isamu.

"Take him and reinstate the Bloody Mist decree," supplied the other man.

"He has Konoha blood by his mother, too," Emiri retorted evenly. "He has lived in Konoha since The War."

"But where is his citizenship?" Asked the man who held the kunai in front of Isamu. He laughed when Emiri fell silent; Isamu, was ultimately a member of Kirigakure.

"He is a ward of Konoha," Emiri argued. "As such, he is under Konoha's jurisdiction, and by threatening his life, you threaten my village." Emiri raised her sword defensively. "Are you prepared to break the peace between our villages for this boy?"

"Are you?" The man holding Isamu taunted.

Emiri tightened her grip on her sword, and Kakashi drew a kunai.

"You give us no choice," Kakashi decided, his eyes irritably narrowed at their opponents. He then turned to Emiri. "Protect the boy."

Emiri nodded and they both launched into action. Emiri headed straight for the man who held Isamu. Isamu yelled out when the man leaped away from the tree, and Emiri's sword slashed into the tree. Below, she could hear the sound of metal against metal as Kakashi engaged with the other man, their fight moving to the ground.

Emiri frowned as she chased after the man. She knew she could easily get to him but only at the risk of putting Isamu in danger.

"There's no time for this," Emiri murmured as she slid her swords back into their sheaths. Instead, she honed in on the man who held Isamu, raised her into a square shape and aimed directly for his forehead.

The man attempted to flee and found himself frozen to the spot. Emiri's red lips turned up into a half-smile.

"This jutsu does one of two things," Emiri explained to the man. "I can either tear you apart from the inside through your chakra network—and it will be incredibly painful. Or," Emiri moved an arm, and the man, shakingly, did the same. "I can make you do exactly as I want."

The man looked on with fear, and Emiri simply stared him down. She then glanced at Isamu who looked on, fearfully, his dark eyes searching on hers, looking for an anchor.

Emiri looked for Kakashi, and saw him tying the other man up on the ground. When he was finished, he jumped into the trees and held a kunai at the man's neck. "Come get Isamu, and I can take it from here," said Kakashi.

Emiri nodded and jumped over to stand beside Kakashi. As she did so, she made eye contact with the man again. She then opened her arms, and the man mimicked her movements, freeing Isamu.

"Emiri-nee-chan!" Isamu jumped into Emiri's arms.

Emiri clung to the boy, and behind his back, she brought her hands together to release her jutsu, and Kakashi knocked the man out.

"Isamu, are you hurt?" Emiri asked as she landed gracefully on the ground. She turned him around to examine him. She noticed that he had a couple scrapes and bruises, but no real damage. She also noted he wore his backpack with a cartoon tiger face on it, and it looked to be stuffed to capacity. Once she determined the boy was physically safe, her thoughts went to his mental well-being at being captured.

"I'm not hurt," said Isamu, as he hugged Emiri tightly. From the corner of his eye, he peeked around Emiri to watch Kakashi tie up the men. He then watched Kakashi summon three dogs.

"Two of you stay here with these men, Pakkun, run back to the village and have someone come for these separatists."

"You got it, boss," Pakkun said with a salute. He then glanced at Isamu who stared with wide eyes. Pakkun the dog winked at the boy before running away.

"is the boy hurt," Kakashi asked.

"No, not for a couple of bruises and scratches."

Kakashi knelt in front of the boy and smiled at him through his mask and ruffled Isamu's hair. "You were very brave," Kakashi complimented. "How did you manage to run away from the clinic?"

"Easy," said Isamu. "I got my tiger backpack and I stuffed it with my clothes and snacks and hid by the village gates and waited for Emiri-nee-chan."

"How did the men capture you?"

"They knew my last name," Isamu said. "So I stopped and listened to them. Then I got a feeling they were bad, so I tried to run away. That's when I saw you and Emiri-nee-chan, but they knocked me out before I could get to you."

"You got a feeling they were bad," Kakashi repeated, intrigued. "That is a very good instinct, Isamu." He then held out a fist for Isamu to bump. Isamu regarded it warily, before he reached out a tiny fist, grinned widely, and bumped it enthusiastically.

"Now that we have the real you," said Emiri. "What will we do with you? It would have been a good idea to have Pakkun escort him back—"

"NO!" Isamu looked up at Emiri, and Kakashi who now stood.

"I don't want to go back. I want to stay with you, Emiri-nee-chan, and with you, Kakashi!" Isamu folded his arms across his chest and stared down the two adults.

"Kakashi- _sama_ ," Emiri corrected.

"That's quite alright," Kakashi said, a smile in his voice.

"You guys are so cool! Did you _see_ Kakashi fight the bad guys? He was like pow pow pow! And you were like woooosh with your swords!" Isamu raun around in a circle punching, kicking, and swinging imaginary swords at the air. He then stopped in front of Emiri, his dark eyes gleamingly stubborn. "Ryo-san can't do that. He's boring. It's boring without you, Emiri-nee-chan. Please, I want to go with you."

"Isamu, if you weren't just kidnapped, I would have relented, but now that this journey can turn dangerous, I don't know. You don't even have paperwork to get across the border."

"How old is he?" asked Kakashi.

"Five," Isamu answered, holding up five fingers.

"This is the last year he could travel without paperwork," Kakashi mused. "Besides, I'm also the Hokage, so, even if he was older, border patrol would make an exception for me. Finally, don't you think it would be a good idea for Isamu to visit his homeland?"

"See? Kakashi thinks it's a good idea! So I can go! This is my first mission!"

"Along the way I'll even teach you how to stand, so when someone tries to tackle you, they can never knock you off your feet," Kakashi promised.

"Really? You're so cool!"

Isamu took Kakashi's hand and tugged him forward. "Let's go, let's go! Teach me now!"

"Slow down, Isamu," Kakashi urged nervously, as though he just realized what he agreed to. "I'm an old man, I'm not young like Emiri."

"Emiri is _so old_ ," Isamu deadpanned. "You're both old."

Emiri's eye twitched irritably. She palmed her forehead and shook her head. "Am I the only mature one here," she asked, but Isamu and Kakashi seemed to not hear her as Isamu talked Kakashi's ear off, and the two got further and further away.

Still. Emiri found herself smiling. She had never seen Isamu smile so big. Before Emiri caught up with Kakashi and Isamu, Emiri reached into her shuriken holster and drew out a golden compact and a tube of lipstick. Quickly, she re-applied her red lipstick before she jogged up to her travel partner and the little boy who stole her heart.

As Isamu pretended to punch imaginary foes ahead of them, Kakashi turned to Emiri.

"How do you feel?"

"Rusty," Emiri admitted, it had been a long time since she had to be analytical and calm. "But, surprisingly good. I haven't stopped training these past two years, even if I stopped going on missions. Oh," Emiri lightly touched Kakashi's arm, and quickly withdrew. "Thank you, Kakashi-sama, for reminding me to keep my focus."

"You did well, Emiri," Kakashi nodded approvingly. His eyes flicked to Isamu to check-in on him before he looked at her once more. "You are very easy to work with."

"So are you, Kakashi-sama," Emiri agreed. She liked that she barely needed to speak to him throughout the entire situation. Working with Kakashi made her feel like she was working with an equal, though she recognized that Hatake Kakashi's abilities outranked hers by far. He was Hokage, after all.

As they walked in silence, a thought struck her, and Emiri ran her thumb across the Leaf insignia etched on the head band at her hip. The last time she fell into an easy camaraderie like she did earlier with Kakashi, she was with Neji.

Maybe, she thought, Neji was looking out for her after all.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Every author believes they have the best readers, and I strongly believe that _I_ am lucky enough to have you guys as my readers. Truly, you all are amazing! **

**Thanks for reading!**

 **Your reviews are love!**

 **x**


	7. Boundaries

**_Pieces_**

A Kakashi Romance

7: Boundaries

* * *

They arrived in Kirigakure at sunset the next day through the Great Naruto Bridge. Once there, Emiri watched as Kakashi paused at the end of the bridge, as if reliving an old and fond memory.

"This bridge is special to you," Emiri noted, since the bridge shared the name of his pupil.

"Very," Kakashi said, tenderness in his voice.

Something in Emiri stirred and she wanted to hear the story, to hear Kakashi talk about himself, but she held back from asking as her own self-doubt holding her back. Instead, she nodded and continued to hold Isamu's hand as Kakashi joined them and they continued the last leg of their journey. "It's very convenient," Emiri said, and she wondered if she sounded as lame as she felt.

Just as night fell, they arrived at the Mizukage's office, and they were greeted by the Mizukage, a beautiful woman with long brown hair.

"Kakashi! It's been a while," Mei greeted amicably. "Oh! I didn't know you had a wife and son!"

"Er, I don't."

"It's not like that!"

Emiri and Kakashi both stuttered in unison and looked away from each other. Isamu glanced at the two of them, his sleepy, five-year-old mind barely registering the adults' embarrassment.

"I'm Yamanaka Emiri," Emiri introduced herself, stuffing down her feelings and pressing forward as diplomatically as possible. "I'm here to discuss expansion plans for a children's clinic."

"It's been a while since I've been to Kirigakure, so I thought I'd tag along," Kakashi explained casually.

"That makes more sense," Mei laughed. "Though I was excited to hear a good romance story."

"Sorry about that," Kakashi rubbed the back of his neck. "The boy is Munashi Isamu."

The smile from Mei's face fell. "D-did you say Munashi?"

Kakashi nodded once, "he is the nephew of Munashi Jinpachi—his younger brother's kid."

"I remember now," said Mei,"Jinpachi was willing to murder his older brother, but let the little one live. He grew to be a decent shinobi."

"And he had a child with a kunoichi from Konoha."

"Still not me," Emiri felt the need to clarify.

"But the boy was raised here until The War, and since, has been living as a ward of Konoha since then. He has also been under the excellent care of Yamanaka Emiri since then."

Emiri felt heat rise to her face at the compliment from her Hokage—no, Kakashi. It was Kakashi more than his title that made her blush.

"The poor thing looks so tired," Mei noted. It was true, Isamu looked as though he practically slept on his feet.

"We still have a lot to report to you, Mei," Kakashi said, in reference to the attack at the beginning of their journey.

"And you will, Kakashi. Tomorrow. I'll show you both to your room."

"Room," Emiri repeated in a voice only Kakashi could hear, as they followed Mei into the Mizukage's residence. "As in singular."

"I think so," Kakashi whispered back as they followed Mei through a hallway.

"Here we are!" Mei pushed open a wooden door to reveal a room with a single bed.

"Mei-sama…" Emiri started uncertainly.

"Fine," Mei breathed out a sigh. She entered the room and opened a door that revealed a bathroom. In the bathroom there was another door that Mei opened to reveal a second room. "Two rooms."

"Thank you for your hospitality," Kakashi said to his fellow Kage as Emiri struggled with the Mizukage's insinuations.

"Of course, Kakashi," Mei said with a smile for both him and Emiri. "Let me know if I can be of any more service."

"You're going above and beyond," Emiri smiled through clenched teeth, and the Mizukage simply laughed at her.

"I'll have dinner brought up for you both, and we'll meet in the morning," Mei said before she disappeared.

Emiri shook her head at the woman as she left.

"Well," said Kakashi, "I'll take the next room. Do you want Isamu to stay with you or with me?"

"Emiri-nee-chan," Isamu murmured and hugged Emiri's knees. Emiri smiled faintly.

"I guess that's his answer."

"Alright then," Kakashi smiled as he walked through the bathroom and into the other room, closing the door behind him.

Emiri looked down at the tired boy. Carefully, she picked him up and walked him over to the bed. Taking off his backpack and sandals, Emiri tucked him under the covers, and he was snoring by the time she finished.

"What am I going to do with you, Isamu," Emiri murmured as she took off her own backpack and weapons belt and set them on the dresser.

She walked into the bathroom and closed the door behind her. She could hear Kakashi in the other room setting his stuff down as well. Quickly, she jumped into the shower. She was in and out of the bathroom in less than five minutes, making sure there was enough hot water for Kakashi.

Emiri quickly dressed in her room, pulling on a clean pair of shorts and a long, dark blue t-shirt that fell to her thighs.

Isamu still snored lightly in the way that children often do when she pulled back the covers. Momentarily she paused before she lied down, sitting with her legs dangling over the bed. In all technicality, Isamu was her _patient_ , therefore, her _job_. Having the boy sleep beside her would be a dual-relationship that was often advised against in the medical and mental health profession.

But as Emri pulled the covered over her legs and turned on her side, facing the bathroom door, Emiri knew in her heart Isamu had long ago become more than her job. The little boy had stolen the pieces of her heart that she was afraid to lose after her beloved's passing.

Emiri saw the light flick on from the closed bathroom door, and she could hear Kakashi quietly walk around before the shower started to run. A fleeting thought crossed her mind and the other pieces of her heart, but Emiri had succumbed to sleep before her thoughts could be processed.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

 **:)**

 **Thanks for reading!**

 **Your reviews are love!**

 **x**


	8. Awake

**_Pieces_**

A Kakashi Romance

Chapter 8: Awake

* * *

Emiri's eyes shot open when a wail pierced the night. Immediately, she shot out of bed, ready to fight any assailant. A second after her feet hit the floor, the bathroom door burst open, and Kakashi was on the scene, kunai in hand.

But her room was intruder-free, and the wailing, she realized, came from Isamu who tossed and turned beside her. Plagued by the images in his mind. Emiri's heart broke for the boy. Her eyes then briefly flicked up to Kakashi who stood at the other side of the bed, waiting for Emiri to say something—and momentarily, Emiri found it amusing that his face was still covered by his mask—did he ever take that thing off?

"He's having a nightmare," said Emiri, tearing her gaze away from Kakashi and back to the boy. "I've never observed him overnight, but I've read reports that these are fairly common for him. They have at least three times a week."

"Should we wake him?"

"No," said Emiri. "These aren't regular nightmares like you or I would have. It's been reported that if you wake him, he'll run off."

Kakashi's silver eyebrows arched slightly at her comment about "regular nightmares", but Emiri didn't notice as she gingerly sat on the edge of the bed, watching Isamu's face scrunch in fear.

Without warning the door to her room burst open as Mei entered, concern in her blue eyes. "I heard screaming!"

"Isamu is having a nightmare it's—"

Isamu suddenly shot up in bed, his dark eyes wide with terror and he bolted for the door.

"Isamu!" Emiri called, and ran after him. Even with her longer legs, Isamu had managed to sprint from their room, down a set of stairs and out the front door into the night.

"Isamu!"

Emiri chased after the boy as he launched himself blindly into the woods that were nearby, and her heart hammered wildly in her chest as panic constricted her breathing. If that boy got hurt…

Emiri took a sharp left, following the boy. Running barefoot made it difficult to sprint at her quickest speed. She knew if she jumped, she could tackle Isamu and stop him, but if he was already dreaming of traumas, she really didn't want to risk giving the boy one more trauma to dream about.

From the corner of her eye, Emiri saw a flash of silver stop in front of Isamu, halting the boy's blind escape.

Isamu yelled out once as Kakashi wrapped his arms around him, keeping him in place until Emiri caught up. Though his eyes were open, Isamu appeared lost in his mind.

"Isamu, that's enough now," Kakashi said, his voice raised enough to be heard over Isamu's struggling grunts, but his voice wasn't harsh—if anything he managed to be both stern and coaching all at once.

Finally, Isamu's eyes seemed to focus, and immediately tears sprang to his eyes as he fearfully took in his surroundings. The five-year-old's shoulders then began to shake as he started to cry, and Emiri was surprised when he clung to Kakashi.

"Don't let them get me! Don't let them get me!"

Kakashi lifted the boy into his arms, and Isamu clung tightly to Kakashi's neck and continued to cry.

"No one is going to get you."

"Yes they are!"

"You're safe Isamu," Emiri cooed, as she pressed her palm over her chest. His tears made her want to cry as well.

"P-promise," asked Isamu, craning his neck to peek down at Emiri.

"We promise," said Kakashi, and Emiri watched as he smiled though his mask. "No one will get you for two reasons."

"Why," Isamu asked warily, but his little voice came out in a wail.

Kakashi shifted Isamu in his arms, bracing the boy with one arm so his free hand could hold up one finger. "One, you're very vast and hard for an old man like me to keep up with—so if anyone comes for you, they won't be able to catch you."

Isamu sniffled, and the ghost of a smile played on his lips.

"And two," said Kakashi, holding up a second finger, "you have a Hokage and one of Konoha's finest infiltration kunoichi here with you. Do you think someone would take a chance to attack?"

Isamu frowned and buried his head against Kakashi's neck once more, his breaths coming out in occasional short bursts as his crying ceased.

"That's right," Emiri agreed when Kakashi met her eyes. "You are a very safe boy, Isamu. Now, it's time to get you back to bed."

Kakashi carried Isamu as he and Emiri wordlessly retraced their steps back to the Mizukage's residence.

"Three…"

Emiri glanced up at Isamu who was being lulled to sleep by the rhythmic cadence of Kakashi's steps. "What was that?"

"Kakashi said two reasons why I'm safe, but I can count," said Isamu. "One is I'm fast, two is Kakashi, and three is you, Nee-chan. You, me, and Kakashi make three."

Emiri glanced at Kakashi, but he stared straight ahead at the path before them.

"That's right, Isamu," Emiri said. "You are a very good counter."

"I know," Isamu murmured sleepily.

Back at the Mizukage's residence, Emiri closed the door after briefing Mei about Isamu's nightmares.

"Do you want me to put him in my bed," asked Kakashi, still holding the boy. "It's only fair that it's your turn to get uninterrupted sleep."

"No, it's fine," said Emiri, as she walked to the bathroom. "Don't put him under the covers quite yet, I want to clean his feet and make sure they aren't too badly cut."

Emiri returned from the bathroom with a towel wet with warm water. She paused to get an antibacterial salve from her supplies before she sat next to Isamu who was half-awake above the covers.

She lifted each foot to wipe it clean as Kakashi turned on the lamp on the nightstand.

"Tickles," Isamu murmured, trying to pull his feet away.

"I know." A hint of a smile tugged on the corner of Emiri's lips as she cleaned the mud off his feet. As she suspected, there were scratches along the soles of his feet from running over branches. Quickly she rubbed the antibacterial ointment onto his feet and finally tucked him under the covers, and the boy was asleep before she finished tucking him in.

Meanwhile, Kakashi silently observed the scene, his gaze lazily and impassive as always. Emiri glanced at the bottom of her feet and frowned—they weren't any better than Isamu's after chasing after him barefoot as well. She then glanced at Kakashi's feet and noticed he was barefoot too. She had to admit that she was impressed that he managed to out run her and get to Isamu first.

"We should probably wash our feet too," said Emiri, walking across the room and back to the bathroom, beckoning Kakashi to follow her. She cracked the bathroom door behind him, keeping it open just in case Isamu woke up.

The bathroom had a tub connected to the shower. She plugged the drain and began to fill the tub with warm. When there was enough water, she sat on the edge of the tub and swung her legs into the water, and Kakashi did the same, sitting beside her.

Emiri leaned forward and rested her arms across her bare knees and glanced up at Kakashi.

"Thank you," she said, "for getting to Isamu first. My only thought was to tackle him and I wasn't about to do that. Also, you seemed to know exactly what to say to him to make him calm down. That's very impressive. You have a soft spot for kids, huh?"

"Not really," said Kakashi, folding his arms over his chest. "When you're a sensei, you learn what to say to kids, I guess—especially when one of your students as the number one hyperactive knuckle-headed ninja of his time. There were times when even I was worried if he would live as long as he has, and look where he is now."

Emiri laughed out loud at that, and quickly put a hand over her mouth so she didn't wake Isamu. Her eyes danced with laughter as she continued to watch Kakashi. "Uzumaki Naruto, hm," Emiri shook her head. "I remember that one, that's for sure. He was such a brat—Neji told me of how much he _hated_ Naruto for a short period of time…and then that kid changed Neji's life for the better."

Emiri sat up straight, so she was more eye level with Kakashi, meeting his onyx stare. She focused for a moment on the scar over his left eye. She had heard of his famous Sharigan, but she had never seen it up close in action. Thus far, Kakashi had demonstrated considerable skill, and she couldn't imagine what it would have been like for him to have the power of that Kekki Genkai.

"It was a lifetime ago," said Kakashi, chuckling lightly. "They're all grown up now."

"You're not old," Emiri frowned. "Sure you have silver hair, but you're still in your thirties!"

Kakashi chuckled again and closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them, he was looking down. "Compared to you kids, I've seen enough and done enough to last me several lifetimes."

"So have I."

Kakashi glanced up at Emiri, into her pale green eyes. For that moment, Emiri felt incredibly vulnerable as she looked at Kakashi. Maybe she hadn't seen the things he'd seen, but she fully understood what it meant to have experienced so much, she lived several lifetimes.

"So have you," Kakashi agreed.

His words impacted her more than she realized as she felt them resonate in her soul, a little bit of her that felt so deeply buried since Neji's death. She then realized how easily she talked about Neji with Kakashi—she hadn't been able to do that within _anyone_ yet.

Emiri looked down and moved her feet in the now cold water. "I should probably get out of here before I prune." Emiri shuffled her feet to create ripples.

Kakashi leaned close to her and stretched out an arm to reach the towel rack next to her. As he did so, Emiri felt a strange pull in her stomach at her Hokage's closeness.

Yanking the towel from the rack, Kakashi laid it on the ground while Emiri undid the stopper. The water gurgled down the drain as Kakashi wiped his feet with one edge of the towel first, and Emiri followed suit with the other edge. The smallness of the bathroom kept them in close proximity, and several times, Emiri's bare knees brushed against softness of Kakashi's black sweats.

Finally she stood and tried to offer Kakashi a smile, trying to dispel the feeling that hung in the air—or at least hung around her. "So, did you have to wake Naruto up from nightmares?" she asked.

"No," Kakashi answered, his voice strangely thick, which led Emiri to believe he felt the odd heaviness in the air too. "I had to learn to wake up from my own."

When Emiri glanced up, she saw the look in Kakashi's eyes that mirrored hers. Several lifetimes worth of pieces of memories, some good, and some terrible. And she could see the strange vulnerability in his eyes too—like walls coming down in such a painful way.

"Kakashi, I am so sorry. I feel insensitive for what I said earlier about us having regular nightmares. I should have…" Emiri was aware she had dropped the honorific when addressing her superior, but after this mission, Kakashi no longer felt like her superior, he felt like another human seeking contact, and she was surprised to find she was searching for his contact too.

"No need to apologize, Emiri," Kakashi said, his eyes crinkling in the corner, and Emiri wanted to know what his smile looked like. "You didn't know."

The two of them stood facing each other their personal hurts out in the open—Kakashi with his hands lazily in his pockets, and Emiri with her arms down and her hands folded carefully in front of her.

Finally, she took a step back, reaching for the doorknob. "We should probably get some sleep—we have an early morning tomorrow."

Kakashi quirked an eyebrow, his gaze amused as Emiri opened the door, and she turned, realizing she was heading to Kakashi's room.

"Er, I'm going the other way," Emiri said, her cheeks pink with embarrassment. "Good night, Kakashi."

Emiri walked past her Hokage toward the correct door that she had left cracked open and closed it behind her.

For a moment she rested against the closed door and took a breath. From her spot against the bathroom door, she could hear Kakashi chuckle lightly at her, which made her blush more, before he walked to his own room, closing the bathroom door behind him.

Quietly, Emiri padded to her bed and got under the covers beside Isamu and rolled onto her side to stare out the window.

She realized her breathing was still shallow, and she quickly assessed her mental state. She didn't feel any sadder than usual and she wasn't feeling worried about anything, so in all actuality, she should be fine.

She then realized, her shallow breathing wasn't from any preoccupying thought that followed her from The War and Neji's passing, but instead, it was all Kakashi.

Dread and puzzlement flooded her as she thought of her eccentric, but undoubtedly powerful Hokage and the physical responses she had toward him. Emiri burrowed deeper under the covers. There was no way she was getting to sleep tonight. Not with her mind racing as it was.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

 **:)**

 **Thanks for reading!**

 **Your reviews are love!**

 **x**


	9. Choices

**_Pieces_**

A Kakashi Romance

Chapter 9: Choices

* * *

Kakashi found Emiri the next morning in Mei's kitchen, sitting with Isamu as he finished his breakfast. Easily, Kakashi took a seat across from Emiri as she nursed a cup of green tea between her hands.

"How was your meeting with Mei-sama?"

"Predictable," answered Kakashi, pouring himself a cup of green tea as well. He then glanced up at Isamu and Emiri who were looking at him intently. "What?"

"Are you going to take your mask off?" Isamu stared with wide eyes.

"Probably when you look away."

"I WON'T LOOK AWAY!" Isamu raised his spoon into the air; rising to the challenge that Kakashi most certainly did not give him. A look of fierce determination crossed Isamu's small face as he stared hard at Kakashi. He refused to blink or even look down as he spooned cereal into his mouth and getting milk and sugary carbohydrates everywhere.

"You're spilling, Isamu," Emiri raised an eyebrow at the boy. Isamu lowered his eyes for a fraction of a second—

Kakashi put his empty teacup on the table.

"HOW DID YOU DO THAT SO FAST?!"

Emiri chuckled and shook her head; she wouldn't admit that she was a little disappointed as well at not seeing Hatake Kakashi's face.

"When are you leaving to meet with the medical consults?" Kakashi asked.

"We were waiting for you to get back. Well, I was waiting for Mei-sama. She is part of that meeting," Emiri then nodded at Isamu's direction, watching as he carefully picked up each piece of cereal that had spilled and wiped up the milk, too. With his tongue sticking out, Isamu carefully walked the bowl over to the sink.

"I don't know what to do with him today, though."

"I'm going with you!" Isamu quickly ran from the sink and to the table. From under his chair he produced his orange tiger face backpack and pulled it on.

"It will be dreadfully boring, I don't think it's the wisest plan for you to come," Emiri said. "What do you have in your backpack anyway?"

Isamu grinned. "Special treasures!"

"I can take care of him."

"Kakashi, I mean, it's fine, Mei-sama might have—"

"Emiri your mission is to consult with a medical team, not take care of a child. I happen to be free all afternoon."

Emiri frowned. "Do you even like children?"

"I was a sensei."

"That doesn't answer the question."

"Let's ask Isamu."

Both adults turned to face the little boy who stood gripping the shoulder straps of his backpack. He looked from Emiri to Kakashi.

"Will you be boring," Isamu asked Kakashi.

"Probably." Kakashi fixed his lazy gaze on Isamu. "But there's a chance that going with Emiri will be even more boring."

Isamu frowned. "I choose Kakashi!"

 **X**

"Late night?"

Mei arched a delicate eyebrow at Emiri. "You look tired. So did Kakashi earlier this morning."

Emiri was offended by her comment—she took great care of her appearance and even put on her customary red lipstick—but she was sure no amount of caffeine or lipstick would make her appear well rested.

"You know we were chasing after Isamu—I briefed you last night, Mei-sama!"

"I know," Mei laughed, "but there was still plenty of time—"

"Plenty of time to go to my own bed, and sleep by myself, if you don't count Isamu, and wake up very early this morning." Emiri narrowed her eyes and looked away from Mei. For a Mizukage, that woman had no boundaries.

Emiri internally rejoiced when they arrived at Kirigakure's small hospital, ending the other woman's bold insinuations.

"Mizukage-sama!" A man in a white coat greeted from the front desk. "We've been expecting you! This must be Yamanaka Emiri from Konohagakure. I am Sano, lead medical specialist here." The man bowed respectively to both women.

"Pleasure," Emiri smiled and offered him a bow. "I'm excited to get to know the Kirigakure clinic."

"Then let me show you around."

Mei trailed behind Emiri and Sano as they toured the hospital, the tour ultimately leading to an empty hospital wing.

"And this will be the mental health unit," Sano said.

Emiri smiled at the man as he held one of the double doors open for her, and as she passed him, a chill ran through her body. Emiri's eyes narrowed—what was this feeling? Emiri rolled her shoulders, trying to dispel the feeling.

As she walked forward through the empty wing, Sano joined her side. "Our clinic will be a bit different than the original in Konoha and the branch in Suna. We will serve children, but we will also serve adults too."

"That's ambitious," Emiri noted. "Will they be in separate wings?"

"No, together."

Emiri frowned at that. She glanced at Mei who simply watched her, trusting her opinion. "I don't think that's a good idea," Emiri started slowly. "Adult and child services are very different."

"I understand that, Emiri-san, but you must understand that Kirigakure culture is much different than Konoha culture. Our children can handle it." Sano glanced at his Mizukage.

Mei's lips tightened into a line. "There is a distinct culture difference in our nations," Mei said diplomatically, "but if you feel children and adults will not pair well together…"

"For something like mental health, children and adults should be assessed separately," Emiri said, her tone unmoving. "Regardless of culture, mental health is a delicate process. And while I am intrigued by Sano-san's ambition, I will only speak to pediatric care, not adult care."

"She is right, Sano," Mei consented. "The clinic should be singular, either adult or child. For the time being, for the sake of our nations, I will fund a child mental health clinic, and if we expand to adult services later, then so be it."

A tick worked in Sano's jaw as he regarded the women, and the chilling feeling went down Emiri's spine.

"Very well, Mizukage-sama, Emiri-san. I will draw up a proposal for a children's clinic and have it ready by tomorrow."

"I look forward to it," Emiri said and she turned to leave the empty hospital wing with Mei.

Emiri paused outside of the hospital to wait for Mei.

"Sano means well," Mei said, as if she noticed Emiri's unease. "He is smart, strong, and I trust his expertise."

"I don't doubt it," Emiri responded. "If he chooses to continue with this clinic, I would like it if one of my assistants spent some time here ensuring Sano-san's team is provided with the skills necessary to treat children."

"Do you want to walk by our Academy, Emiri?"

The Konoha kunoichi regarded the female Mizukage carefully—she could sense the quiet strength in Mei's chakra and her good intentions—which equated to a trustworthy Mizukage.

"That would be nice."

Mei and Emiri walked in silence all the way to the Academy a few streets down. Since it was the middle of summer, all of the students were away on summer vacation.

"It's smaller than Konoha's," Emiri said, putting her fingers through the chain-link fence that over looked a field and the Academy.

"It is," Mei agreed. "I'm sure you've heard of the history of Kirigakure."

"The Bloody Mist."

"Beauty and brains," Mei approved. "I have worked tirelessly to reform the system here—some say it is a losing battle because we have to make up for our small size with brutality…but I don't believe in that. I believe our future shinobi, no matter how small our numbers, can put up a great fight with their strength without losing their humanity in the process."

"I'm sure you'll build a bright future for Kirigakure shinobi."

"I hope a children's clinic will aid with that—to address the needs of children without parents, and the children with parents who still believe we should be the Bloody Mist."

Emiri frowned, thinking of Isamu's Kirigakure origins because of his father. As if reading her mind, Mei continued.

"The boy that you brought here, Munashi Isamu, do you think he will benefit from being in Kirigakure?"

"That's hard to say," Emiri said. "He was born here, but has spent more years in Konoha."

"Before you leave, I'd like it if you would consider allowing Isamu to stay here and be trained by Kirigakure shinobi."

Emiri looked at Mei, momentarily shocked.

"It will be a great way of continuously building an alliance with Konoha," Mei continued. "Since he is part Kiri and part Konoha, as he grows older, he can grow into a position as a liaison between our nations. And it will give him a chance to learn about his birth country. Finally, I looked into it. Sano is related to the Munashi family—making him Isamu's living relative. I expected Sano to mention it to you today, but"

Emiri had so many counterpoints to Mei's proposal. Everything that Mei said, Emiri could argue in favor of Konoha, but Emiri had a good point—but Mei's last comment was enough to dispel all arguments.

"Isamu should be with his family."

 **X**

It was still afternoon by the time Mei and Emiri returned to the Mizukage's residence. She climbed the stairs to the second floor, to her and Kakashi's adjacent rooms, and opened the door to her room.

The curtains were open and Isamu sat by himself at the desk beside the window, the sea breeze filtering through the sunlight room. He sat and swung his legs, working on something with all his concentration, his little legs swinging as he did so.

"Where's Kakashi?"

"He's in the other room reading," Isamu said, his voice short as he was still concentrating.

Emiri ruffled Isamu's hair. "Did Kakashi hang out with you at all today?"

"Yeah! We walked around, we went to the park, I threw a shuriken, and now we're playing a game."

"What's the game?"

"Hokage and assistant."

"Oh?"

"We sit in different rooms, he does his work and I do mine, and I only find him if he calls me or if I finish my work first. It's fun!"

Emiri's eye twitched with irritation as she glanced toward Kakashi's room. She grudgingly gave him points for having all the bathroom doors open so Isamu was very loosely supervised.

"What are you working on?"

"A present for you and Kakashi—don't look!" Isamu bent over the desk and covered his art with his body. His dark eyes flashed with panic, and Emiri laughed.

"Okay, I will leave you to your work then, young assistant."

Emiri walked into Kakashi's room and found the man sitting at his own table with the window open. His legs were crossed and propped up on the table as he reclined in his chair, his face buried in an _Icha Icha_ book and Emiri rolled her eyes—she read the series once, and she wasn't impressed. It was repetitive and some of the positions described were impossible to bend into—even for high quality athletic shinobi like either Kakashi or herself. Emiri's eyes widened and she blushed slightly as an image of her and Kakashi as the main characters of _Icha Icha_ flashed into her mind.

"So…Hokage and assistant, huh?" Emiri cleared her throat, and Kakashi promptly looked up from his book and put it away, a guilty blush on his face.

"He also mentioned something about shuriken throwing."

"Ah, maybe I shouldn't have done that. He hasn't been trained at all." Kakashi rubbed the back of his neck. He watched as Emiri perched on the edge of his bed and crossed her legs and gave him her attention, her face aloof.

"Was he any good?"

"A little shaky, but good instincts and decent aim. He could become remarkable with training."

"Well that's good," Emiri said, her blank look breaking into a smile. "We made a decision at the clinic that the children without families to speak for them will have a choice if they want to pursue a shinobi path or not regardless of their family traditions."

"If Isamu decides to become a shinobi, he'd be a very successful one." Kakashi agreed. "How was the clinic?"

Emiri frowned at that, and Kakashi's eyebrows raised curiously.

"Strange," Emiri admitted. "I would open a clinic here, but the head medic…I didn't get the strongest of impressions from him. I would have this one under constant surveillance for some time."

Kakashi was quiet with thought. "I don't want to disregard your opinion. However, I don't know if constant surveillance will strengthen ties between Kiri and Konoha."

"Exactly, and, it turns out Isamu has a relative here, that same head clinician Sano."

"Oh?"

Emiri stood from Kakashi's bed to look out the window. From her vantage point, she could see the small city, and she knew beyond that, there was the sea a few miles out. "So, legally, I'll have to leave Isamu here. Even if he was born in Konoha."

Emiri wondered what Kakashi thought of her, her heart tangled in this mess of working with children without families and locating families. And little Isamu who she had come to love with her whole heart—she wondered if Kakashi thought of her as weak and unprofessional.

"Working with children often ends up complicated," Kakashi agreed, watching Emiri's every move.

"Yeah."

"Kakashi! Emiri-nee-chan! I'm done with my work!" Isamu ran into the room, a huge grin on his face as he stopped in the space between Kakashi and Emiri. In either hand, he held to folded pieces of paper. "One for you, and one for you!" He exclaimed, holding them out.

Kakashi and Emiri shared a look and took the pieces of paper.

"Oh, Isamu…"

Emiri stared down at the drawing in hand. It was a five-year-old's best efforts at drawing human figures, but based on the colors and sizes, she knew it was her, Isamu, and Kakashi, standing in order of tallest to shortest, their noodle arms connected as if they were all holding hands.

"Isamu, is this really what you think my face looks like?" Kakashi asked, turning his page side-ways. Emiri glanced over at Kakashi's picture and laughed out loud at the large smile drawn, and a strange black mark. She wondered what that was.

"I only saw your face once, and it's hard to remember," Isamu frowned. "But did I do good on yours, Emiri-nee-chan? I got your legs right?"

"They are…very long and skinny…I think that's a compliment."

Isamu beamed as he crawled onto Kakashi's bed to sit beside Emiri. Absently, Emiri ran her hand through the boy's hair, and Isamu snuggled against her side.

"It's us," said Isamu. "You, me, and Kakashi as the best team ever!"

"We are a good team," said Emiri softly. She took a breath, her green eyes flicked up to her Hokage—her partner in this moment she needed support. Kakashi was still; his dark eyes were anchors that kept her from floating away.

"That's why," she continued, "you're going with me on my mission tomorrow, I need the very best team with me."

"YEAH!" Isamu said, punching a fist into the air. "Do I get to use your shuriken?!"

"I definitely hope not."

"Aww, that's not fun, Emiri-nee-chan! Kakashi, can I use yours then?"

"Probably not. Sorry, Isamu."

"You guys are no fun!" Isamu protested, crossing his arms and pouted.

Emiri's eyes never left Kakashi's—and Kakashi's gaze was unwavering, as if he was okay with being the only pillar reminding her to be brave when all she wanted to do was crumble.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

 **Guys. I'm sorry for the lack of updates. I've been busy to say the least. Here's to hoping I can get back on a somewhat regular schedule! Thanks for sticking around! And for the new readers...welcome!**

 **Thanks for reading!**

 **Your reviews are love!**

 **x**


	10. The Hardest Things

**_Pieces_**

A Kakashi Romance

Chapter 10: The Hardest Things

* * *

Emiri had waged war on the cowlick that refused to go down on Isamu's head. Though, after five minutes and Isamu starting to fuss, she admitted defeat and ruffled his messy black hair. "So much for looking well cared for."

"I am cared for," Isamu insisted as he ran a hand over his hair, smoothing down the rumpled parts caused by Emiri. Isamu looked at Emiri who sat on the edge of the tub so she could be eye level with him.

Quietly, Isamu hugged Emiri, and Emiri put her arms tightly around him.

"Why are you sad, nee-chan?"

"I'm not." Emiri held the boy arms length and gave him a close-eyed smile.

Isamu wasn't convinced. "You're swallowing a lot. Like I do when I don't want to cry. Do you want to cry nee-chan?"

"You, Isamu, are incredibly observant," Emiri smiled and stood. She glanced at her reflection in the mirror before she reached for her lipstick tube on the bathroom counter and swiped the brilliant red across her lips.

"Ready to go, Isamu? Will you get Kakashi?"

Isamu, dressed in his red shirt and cargo pants, adjusted the straps of his tiger backpack and nodded before pulling open the second bedroom door without a knock.

"Kakashi! Are you ready?"

Emiri sighed at the five-year-old. Sometimes he was profound beyond words, and other times, he was absolutely indiscreet. "Knock, next time Isamu," Emiri cautioned.

"Oops, sorry." Isamu rubbed the back of his head and chuckled, and Emiri, once again, couldn't stay mad.

Kakashi's masked face appeared around the corner of the door and his eyes searched for Emiri. "I'm ready," he said. "Are you?"

"As ready as I'll ever be," Emiri answered before she nudged Isamu out of the bathroom so the three of them could go to the hospital.

 **X**

They met in one of the conference rooms in the hospital. Isamu was set up at one end of the long conference table with a juice box, rice cakes, and his coloring supplies. His very important mission was to draw pictures of the meeting as the honorary scribe.

Emiri sat across from Mei and Sano, and Kakashi sat beside her.

Sano smiled at both Emiri and Kakashi, and Emiri nodded in response, though the uneasiness returned to her stomach whenever Sano looked at her. "Let's get started then," said Emiri, her tone cool, professional.

Sano slid two manila folders across the table to Kakashi and Emiri and kept one for himself and passed one to Mei. "This is the plan I drew up last night. Emiri has the original, and the rest of us have copies to follow along with."

Emiri flipped open the folder and glanced at the first page of a fifteen-page contract. She blew out a breath—this was going to be a long meeting. Quickly she glanced at Isamu who watched her carefully. Isamu noticed Emiri's look and grinned at her, giving her a thumbs up of encouragement.

Emiri smiled and quickly glanced away quickly—it was better to start avoiding him now so maybe when they parted ways it would be easier.

"Okay. Page one…"

o

An hour and a half later, Emiri turned the last page of the contract. Sano looked slightly irritable, while Kakashi and Mei looked bored.

"Overall," Emiri folded her hands beneath her chin as she glanced at Sano, her green eyes unwavering. "This is a good plan, however, I do have requirements that I will not negotiate."

"I can tell," Sano said drily as he glanced disdainfully at every sticky note Emiri had put on the contact—she had taken at least thirty notes on his contract.

"Don't worry," Emiri said with a smile, "you repeated yourself several times in this contact, so I had to flag every repetitive portion as well."

"Your non-negotiables, Emiri-san," Sano prompted, as a tick worked in his jaw.

"A medical specialist from Konoha will spend time here working along side your specialists until I feel that Kirigakure's mental health hospital is up to my standards. And I will choose the candidate who will transfer here."

"So you can spy on us?!" Sano's voice raised, and from the corner of her eye, Emiri saw Isamu flinch and stop his coloring.

"Mizukage-sama, you cannot allow this," Sano continued, appealing to Mei beside him. "She is demonstrating a lack of trust in Kirigakure!"

"Emiri has every right to be on edge, Sano-san," Kakashi interjected, carefully watching the man. "On our way here, our ward Isamu was kidnapped and we were attacked by Kirigakure shinobi who wished to counter everything Mei-sama has worked hard to instate."

"It's true, Sano," Mei agreed, glancing at the man beside her. "I can understand the Leaf's anxieties."

"I will not be sending a specialist here to spy, and forgive me if I came across as making such a proposal. Instead, I want a specialist here to make sure the children's behavioral and mental health unit runs as smoothly as possible. That is my sole concern regarding this contract."

"The children's clinic in Suna doesn't have a Konoha shinobi there at all times," Sano countered.

"No," Emiri agreed, "However, Haruno Sakura has a strong relationship with Sunagakure and has spent a considerable amount of time training staff there. Due to this, they have a more similar medical approach to mental health treatment that requires less supervision."

"A fair point," Sano finally agreed once he realized everyone in the room did not agree with him. "Fine. You may select a shinobi to supervise."

"Thank you," Emiri inclined her head once. "Moving on, the second point I wish to address is on pages three, seven, and eleven—again, that repetitive habit. You mention that you will start an adult behavioral and mental health clinic six months after the launch of the children's clinic. I ask that you wait a year to begin the process of addressing adult needs after launching the children's clinic."

"A year?" Mei raised a brunette eyebrow at Emiri, intrigued by her request.

"Yes, Mizukage-sama, a year. I can speak better for children's mental health than adult mental health, however, I would feel comfortable knowing that you have a strong grasp on children's behavioral health before you continue your aspirations. I know it is asking a lot, however, I believe it is important to me in partnering with Konohagakure. I cannot allow my name on a partnership if I know something will go wrong."

"I'm unsure if we can accommodate this, Emiri," Mei said slowly as she pursed her lips in thought.

"I don't think we can agree to a year," Sano answered. "However, we can agree to nine months after the launch of the children's clinic."

All eyes turned to Emiri as they awaited her answer. Emiri chewed the inside of her lip, surprised by Sano's offer, even if it did nothing to alleviate her suspicions of the man. Finally, she nodded. "Fine, nine months."

"Perfect," Sano smiled at her as he scratched a note across his copy. "It will take me an hour to revise this contract and then it will be ready to be signed and we can attend to other business."

Emiri felt her hands start to shake and she folded them on her lap, under the table to hide them, unaware that Kakashi caught her movements. "That sounds perfect," said Emiri.

The adults rose from their seats and Emiri walked over to Isamu. "How about we get some lunch?"

"Sure, let me put everything away!" The boy speedily packed up his belongings before he jumped from his seat and took Emiri's hand.

"Is Kakashi coming too?"

"Oh I don't know." Emiri glanced at Kakashi who had begun to walk out of the room.

Isamu let go of Emiri's hand long enough to run after him. "Kakashi!" Isamu tugged on the back of Kakashi's grey flak jacket. "Do you want to get lunch with Emiri and me? It'll be like a team meeting!"

"Ah…" Emiri thought about making an excuse as to why Kakashi couldn't join them when she saw the hope in Isamu's eyes. Her shoulders sagged as she breathed out a sigh. "It'll be fun," she said, offering the Sixth Hokage a genuine smile.

"I could eat," answered Kakashi, his dark eyes on Emiri; he chuckled when Isamu cheered excitedly as they walked to the closest store to buy sandwiches.

Kakashi carried the plastic bag that held their sandwiches while Emiri held Isamu's hand as they walked to a park near the hospital to have lunch.

"Oh, can we sit by the playground," asked Isamu, tugging on Emiri's hand to walk faster.

"After you eat some of your sandwich," she answered as they sat on a bench that looked at the jungle gym. Emiri began to reach for the plastic back when she heard the crinkle of a wrapper. She glanced at Kakashi to see him crumpling the his sandwich paper into a ball.

"H-how did you manage to eat so fast," Emiri asked, her eye twitched slightly. "We literally _just_ sat down…"

"I'm done too!"

"Seriously?" Emiri's eyebrows shot high up her forehead as she looked at Isamu's lunch, and sure enough he was done, leaving a few trace crumbs on his empty sandwich wrapper. Isamu didn't wait for an answer as he ran forward to climb the monkey bars.

"I don't know whether to be impressed or worried," Emiri murmured as she pulled out her own sandwich to enjoy at a normal pace. As she chewed, Kakashi sat beside her quietly, this silence comforting, as they watched the little boy race around the jungle gym, fighting off imaginary shinobi foe.

"Are you ready for what happens when we return to the hospital," asked Kakashi once Emiri finished her lunch.

Emiri crumpled her sandwich wrapper and from her seat, tossed it into the nearby trashcan, proud of herself when it went in. "Ready to sign the papers? Yes. Ready to leave without Isamu…." Emiri bit her bottom lip, watching the boy. She didn't trust herself to speak; instead she simply shook her head once.

"I hope I'm doing the right thing," she murmured. "I really hope so." Emiri held her hands firmly in her lap to stop them from shaking.

 **X**

After lunch, they made their way back to the hospital in slow succession. Every step felt heavier and heavier.

"You're so slow today, Nee-chan," Isamu said, running behind Emiri to push at her back to make her walk faster.

"Sorry, Isamu," Emiri sighed. Outside of the hospital, she gave Kakashi a look, and Kakashi understood because he quietly slipped into the double doors while Emiri remained outside with Isamu.

Kneeling on the ground, Emiri put her hands on Isamu's shoulders and smiled.

"Emiri-nee-chan," Isamu said. He moved forward, as if sensing Emiri's sadness and put his arms around her neck. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, Isamu. I just want you to know that no matter what, you are a wonderful little boy and you are never far from my heart." I love you, Emiri thought. I love you so much. But professionalism told her to keep that love to herself.

"I love you, nee-chan," Isamu murmured before he pulled away from Emiri and smiled at her, as if he smiled hard enough he could chase away all her sad feelings.

"You too, Isamu," Emiri said, her heart breaking because all she wanted to do was hold the boy close for a while longer. "Now, let's go, they're waiting for us."

They reconvened in the conference room from earlier. This time, Emiri sat at Kakashi's right hand, and Isamu sat on her right—the three of them across the table from Mei and Sano.

Sano slid the documents over to Emiri as well as a fountain pen. "I rebuilt the contract as you asked. Read it over and sign it if you're ready."

Emiri did just that, carefully checking all clauses and sentence structures. She nodded along, agreeing with the contract. Finally, she took the pen in her shaky hand and signed her name on the dotted line under Sano's signature. Kakashi and Mei signed next as witnesses. Wordlessly, she slipped the contract back to Sano who filed it into a manila folder.

The pregnant pause in the room was palpable. Finally, Sano cleared his throat. "As for the next order of business."

Emiri blinked at the word "business". Isamu was not business, he was a sweet, energetic boy with so much potential. Emiri took a breath and looked at Isamu who colored beside her.

"Isamu."

The boy looked up, pausing from his tiger coloring sheet.

"Do you remember when I told you that your records show that your father was from Kirigakure and your mother from Konoha."

"Yeah."

"So, where we are not is part of your heritage. This village is where half of your blood is from." Emiri took a deep breath; she paused and looked back at Kakashi, wondering if he could see how much she was shaking. "Do you remember Ryo-san and I spending a lot of time looking for your family so you didn't have to live at the hospital?"

"I remember, and I don't have family," Isamu answered, his young face falling into a frown.

"It turns out you do, and I found out about this recently too."

"Who?!"

"The man sitting across from you." All eyes in the room turned to Sano. "Sano-san is a your father's cousin, and he would like to adopt you."

Isamu stared hard at Sano. Sano offered a smile. Isamu then looked down at his tiger drawing, gripping his orange crayon tightly and he swung his legs that didn't quite reach the ground. Finally he looked up at all the adults in the room and smiled brightly at Isamu. "No thank you."

Emiri passed a hand over her face, when she did so, she felt Kakashi's gloved hand on her shoulder. He leaned over to look at the little boy.

"Isamu, what I think Emiri is trying to tell you is that you don't have much of a choice. The laws state that you must go to a living relative."

Kakashi's hand lingered a moment longer and Emiri noticed when he withdrew, and she wished he didn't. "Kakashi is right, Isamu. By law, I have to give you to Sano, and he will take care of you from now on. Here in Kirigakure."

"I don't want to! I want to stay with you!"

"Isamu, living in a hospital is not what you deserve. You need to be with your family—"

"You're my family! You and the other kids, and Ryo-san! And you, me, and Kakshi are a team, remember?! I said no thank you!" In his anger, Isamu began to cry.

"Isamu…" Emiri reached out to touched the boy's shoulder.

The sound of him slapping her hand seemed to echo in the room as everyone stared.

"No! I hate you! You don't want my anymore and I hate you!" Suddenly, Isamu rose from his seat and bolted from the room.

"Isamu!" Emiri dashed after him, and grabbed the boy's arm tightly before he made it to the lobby.

"NO! Let me go!" Isamu struggled and kicked when Emiri wrapped her arms around him, keeping him in place. His struggles eventually stopped and he clung to her tightly, sobbing snot and tears onto her top, and Emiri didn't care—she simply held the boy, feeling his confusion, his hurt, his anger.

"It won't be so bad," Emiri tried to soothe. "Ryo-san will be here, so you can see him all the time, and I'll visit often, so I'll still see you and…"

"But I want to l-live with you in K-K-Konoha," Isamu sniffed.

"I want you to stay in Konoha too," Emiri murmured into Isamu's hair. "But a law is a law. And the best thing I can do for you as your teammate is give you your best chance with your family. Even if it hurts me too."

"I d-don't want f-family. I want y-you."

She held him a while longer, rocking him gently in the hallway. Eventually, Emiri did get up and carried Isamu with her, back into the conference room and put the boy in his chair. She was unable to meet anyone's stare.

"I will have Ryo send Isamu's file to you by the end of today. At this time, I've been the one who has worked closely with Isamu for the past two years, and if you have any questions Sano-san, please don't hesitate to contact me."

"Of course, Emiri-san."

Emiri looked at Isamu, his dark eyes round and red-rimmed with tears and hurt.

"Isamu, be a good boy, okay? I think, if you decide to go to the Ninja Academy here, you'll be a very good shinobi. And if you want to, you can write letters to me, okay? I would look forward to those very much."

"Emri-nee-chan…" Isamu's eyes filled with tears again and Emiri ruffled his hair.

"This isn't goodbye, Isamu, so you don't have to cry too hard. I'll see you later, only if you want to see me too, because I understand that you're mad at me right now."

Emiri looked at Sano, Kakashi, and Mei, and as she was standing, she offered them a bow. "If we're done here, I'm going to leave. Thank you, Mei-sama, Sano-san, Kakashi-sama."

Emiri quickly left the conference room and was out of the hospital as quickly as possible. If it wasn't unprofessional, she would have run as far as she could.

"Emiri-nee-chan!" Emiri's knees buckled as Isamu scooped his arms around her legs, hugging her fiercely.

"Nee-chan I don't hate you. So can I go home with you?"

"Isamu, this is your home." Emiri knelt, and adjusted Isamu's backpack straps—the boy looked ready to run away with her.

"Konoha is home."

"It is. But so is Kirigakure for you." Isamu did not look convinced. Emiri smiled at him, and she felt tears prick the corners of her eyes. Outside of the presence of her Hokage and Sano and Mei, Emiri allowed herself to cry a couple tears.

"Think of this as a mission, Isamu. And I want you to successfully complete your mission. Be good, make friends, and be happy. As your teammate I'm counting on you, Isamu."

Isamu was silent. Finally he launched himself into Emiri's arms one last time. When he pulled away, his bright, teary eyes were hard as he stood up straight. "I'm going to be the best shinobi ever and I'm going to make you proud on this mission."

"That's my boy," Emiri said, her vision blurry from her tears when she smiled at him. Gently, she turned the boy around to face the hospital and patted his shoulder. "Now go, Sano-san is waiting for you."

Isamu's fists bunched into little balls before he marched himself back into the hospital, and finally, Emiri turned and left, Munashi Isamu's adorable face forever etched on her heart—just like Neji.

 **X**

It was dark when he heard a knock on his door that came from the bathroom. Quietly, Kakashi put his book aside and got out of bed to open the door.

Emiri stood quietly, dressed in her black compression shorts and a clean, black t-shirt. Her face was washed clean, and of course, Kakashi thought she was gorgeous, admiring the way her dark brown hair fell over her shoulder, stopping at her breasts.

But she looked wrong. Her serene green eyes looked blank and devoid of all emotion.

"Emiri?"

"Can we leave first thing in the morning? I just want to go home now that the mission is over."

"Of course," Kakashi answered, watching as Emiri nodded once, lifelessly.

"So, do I pass? Will the Elders stop being suspicious of me now that I successfully completed this mission?"

"Yes," answered Kakashi. "I will inform them of our success once we're home."

"Thank you." Emiri's beautiful lips tried to curl into a smile, and they did, but it looked wrong on her face.

"Good night, Kakashi." Emiri turned and silently padded back to her room, closing her bedroom door behind her with a soft click.

Kakashi closed his door and returned to bed as well. He dog-eared his book and put it on the nightstand before shutting off the bedside lamp.

Kakashi propped his arms behind his head and stared at the ceiling, listening to the breeze outside and thought of Emiri.

Kakashi was never one to physically comfort someone, and he could count the few times on his fingers when he did so. But for the second time that day, he wanted to wrap his arms around Emiri and keep her close to protect her from her own feelings that he could see threaten to eat her alive from the inside out.

He wondered if it was a mistake wanting her in his arms as much as he did in that moment, if she would even accept the touch he wanted to offer her—nothing sexual for now, just protective.

He wondered if it was a mistake for not holding her.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

 **Thanks for reading!**

 **Your reviews are love!**

 **x**


	11. Silence That Screams

**_Pieces_**

A Kakashi Romance

Chapter 11: Silence That Screams

* * *

"Just about everything is in order," Hinata said in her gentle voice as a soft smile crossed her lips. She looked around the living room at her friends Sakura, Ino, and Emiri who shared dim sum and sake with her.

"We are so excited for you," Sakura said, her hands clasped together. "I can't believe you get married in a week! I can't believe _Naruto_ gets married in a week!"

"I can't believe how much things have changed," Ino added.

"It'll be a perfect day," Emiri added, her voice quiet as she poured herself one more cup of sake.

It would be fair to say that all the girls in the room were tipsy off the strong drink, and it would also be accurate to say that Emiri had the most to drink, as her eyes were the glossiest of them all.

"Thank you everyone," Hinata said with a shy giggle behind her hand. Her lavender-clear eyes discreetly stole a glance in Emiri's direction, noting her sixth cup of sake, and the way she got quieter.

The four girls continued to chat and pick at the now cold dumplings before Sakura glanced at the clock first, noticing how late it had gotten. She yawned and the laughed lightly at herself, scratching at her cheek, pinked from the alcohol. "Speaking of growing up," she said, "I think I better get going so I can sleep and wake up without a hangover. It's an early morning at the clinic."

"I'd better go too," Ino agreed, rising to her feet, as did Emiri.

"I can help you clean up," Emiri volunteered, grabbing the empty bottle of sake and the dim sum containers as Ino and Sakura hugged Hinata and left.

"Oh, I don't mind—"

"Let me help," Emiri said with a smile, her words only _slightly_ slurred in her opinion. "Soon enough you'll have a life of picking up after Naruto, so enjoy the help while you can!"

Sakura and Ino laughed, their laughter and goodbyes following Emiri to the kitchen as she disposed of all the items. For a moment, she leaned against a kitchen counter, closing her eyes, trying to stop the ground beneath her from spinning. When she opened her eyes, she looked out the window above the sink and at the full moon.

It had been two months since she and Kakashi had left Isamu in Kirigakure, and there wasn't a day that went by where she didn't miss the little energetic boy.

"Nee-san?"

Emiri turned to see Hinata watching her carefully.

"Sorry, I got distracted," she smiled, hoping Hinata didn't notice the way her smile didn't quite meet her eyes, or the way she barely spoke since she returned from Kirigakure.

"That's alright," Hinata said gently. "Thank you for helping me clean up tonight. And for doing my hair and make-up for the wedding. Really, Emiri-nee-san, thank you."

"It really isn't a problem," Emiri smiled. "Even if I'm not married to Neji, you're still family in my heart."

"And you are mine." Hinata took a step closer into the kitchen. "If you need to, you can stay the night so you don't have to walk home."

"I'll be fine," Emiri said, and bit her tongue sheepishly, hoping both she and Hinata could pretend her words didn't slur together. "Home isn't that far away."

"Are you sure, nee-san? There's a guest room with clean sheets and it really will be no trouble at all—"

"Hinata, don't worry about me. I'm good, see?" Emiri pushed off from against the counter and walked a straight line, one foot in front of the other. "See? Perfect balance."

Hinata frowned uncertainly, and Emiri smiled, pulling Hinata into a hug. "I'm fine, Hinata, really I am. It was good seeing you tonight. Please let me know if you need anything else for the wedding."

Emiri quickly left before Hinata could protest anymore. She was acutely aware of Hianta's watchful gaze as she left the Hyuuga compound, taking a left into the village. Emiri frowned slightly, it was obvious that Hinata still remembered the months following Neji's death and the way Emiri drank until she couldn't remember how hollow she felt without Neji.

The village was quiet as this time of night as almost all the shops except the bars were closed. As Emiri walked her familiar path home, she passed the shinobi Academy, and felt a slight pain in her heart—Isamu would have started there later that year if he wanted to be a shinobi. Briefly, she paused outside of the Academy and looked up, noticing a light on in the Hokage's Office.

The proper and logical part of her mind told her she should keep walking and go home to take a warm shower and go straight to bed. But alcohol-fueled thoughts made her walk into the building and follow the light.

She quietly climbed the stairs, all the way up to the Hokage's office and knocked on the door. There was a moment's silence, then, Kakashi's voice from behind the door: "Come in."

Emiri opened the door slightly and peeked her head around it, offering Kakashi a smile. "Hi Kakashi."

Since returning from Kirigakure, the Hokage's office had become a familiar place to her. After the mission, she had spent many long days and nights hashing out plans for Kirigakure's clinic with Ino and Sakura, and sometimes Ryo, all in Kakahsi's presence so he could be up to date with the joint clinic. Truth be told, his office had become a place of solace as she found it difficult to spend time walking through the halls of Konoha's clinic knowing Isamu wouldn't tackle her with a hug.

"This is a surprise," said Kakashi as Emiri closed the door behind her.

"I saw your light on, and thought I'd see what you're up to." Emiri pulled her dark brown hair over her shoulder and walked toward Kakashi's desk, some foggy part of her brain aware that Kakashi watched her carefully, his pen unmoving over his paperwork.

"Emiri." Kakashi's voice was steady, thick, as he felt the tangible change in electricity in the air between them.

"Why do you spend so much time here," asked Emiri as she sauntered closer and finally perched at the edge of Kakashi's desk. She was acutely aware of the way Kakashi's onyx eyes tracked her every move as she crossed her legs and leaned forward on her knees, exposing more of the porcelain skin of her waist. Sober or not, Emiri knew Kakashi watched her ever since their mission, and of course, she watched him too. "Shouldn't you be at home, sleeping?"

"I guess it's the same reason you're here tonight," Kakashi lifted an eyebrow. "You're here when you could be in your own bed too."

"I'm here because I'm wondering why you've refused to give me long-term missions whenever I asked."

"I gave you a mission," Kakashi responded. "Find a present for Naruto's wedding."

"I already have one," Emiri rolled her eyes. "That's not what I mean, Kakashi. Why won't you let me leave Konoha?"

There was silence, silence and a significant look from onyx eyes that watcher her. Some part of her knew that if she wasn't as drunk as she was, she would fully understand the look Kakashi gave her in that moment. For now, the only thing she could read was his stillness, and she had the feeling if she were to make any sudden, explosive motion, he would catch her.

"Do you think I'm trying to run away or something?" Emiri asked after Kakashi's long silence. She looked at him from beneath her long lashes. She didn't expect an answer from him.

Emiri got off the edge of the wooden table and walked around the corner, closing the distance between her and Kakashi.

"Emiri…" Kakashi's voice was something like a warning, and something like a man mesmerized by a beautiful woman as she pushed his chair back and straddled his hips.

Where her courage came from, she wasn't sure, probably the sake. But with or without courage, she couldn't deny how good it felt to be so close to Kakashi, breathing in his masculine scent.

"But I don't know if I want to run anymore," Emiri murmured, learning forward, she touched her forehead against Kakashi's. Her dark hair was a curtain around their faces.

"Running doesn't solve much of anything," Kakashi agreed, his voice low and husky as he allowed Emiri to lift one of his hands to her waist. When Kakashi's fingers skimmed the bare skin of Emiri's waist, she breathed out a sigh.

"After tonight at least," Emiri murmured. She pulled back long enough to look at Kakashi. "Running led me here, and there's no where else I'd rather be."

Emiri shifted over Kakashi's hips, feeling the hardness of his erection against her thigh. The thought of him wanting her made her flush. It was funny how her body seemed to know how to move on it's own, how to touch Kakashi enough to get him to exhale forcefully—it was all funny, and she giggled too, because she was still a virgin. That would have been solved a long time ago if Neji wasn't so self-controlled all the time.

Emiri's fingers grazed up from teasing Kakashi's erection through his pants, and up his chest to the edges of his mask, their faces close together. "I know you've wanted me since Kirigakure," Emiri murmured, her fingers tracing his jawline. "I've noticed you notice me, and I've noticed you too. Kakashi, make me forget everything."

Emiri's fingers toyed with his mask again, and she began to tug it down so she could kiss him. Kakashi's hands shot up from her waist, gripping her wrists tightly enough to shock her.

"Emiri," Kakashi breathed, his voice tight, and painfully controlled. "You're drunk…and vulnerable. This has gone too far."

"I know exactly what I'm doing—"

Kakashi moved to stand, and helped Emiri regain her balance as she jumped off his lap. "Whether or not that's true, it's time for you to sleep off the alcohol. Let's go." Without a glance back at his paperwork, Kakashi put a hand on Emiri's lower back and guided her out of the office.

 **O**

"Kakashi." Emiri waved to the left as Kakashi steered her to the right once they were outside. "My home is this way."

"You want to go home right now," Kakashi asked, his voice a deadpan, "while you can barely walk a straight line?"

"I can walk a straight line!" Emiri pulled away from Kakashi and walked forward, as if she was on a tightrope. Kakashi sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, watching as Emiri applied chakra to her feet to keep her upright.

Emiri then twirled on her foot to face Kakashi and nearly fell over. "Maybe having my entire clan see me like this is a bad idea."

"Are you done complaining?" Kakashi's dark eyes were lit with humor as he struggled to keep his voice stern. "We're going to my place."

"Oh." Emiri looked up at Kakashi, raising an eyebrow.

"You're still drunk, Emiri," he responded in answer to her surprised tone. "Are you comfortable with going to my home?"

"I don't see a problem with it." Emiri linked her arm through Kakashi's, mildly surprised when he put a hand over hers as it rested on his forearm—if it was to keep her close or to guide her along, she wasn't sure.

The walk to Kakashi's apartment was short, as he had moved into the Hokage's residence, which was just around the corner from the Academy. Kakashi pulled out his keys and unlocked the door, allowing Emiri to pass.

Kakashi flicked on the light switch by the door, while Emiri looked around, faintly registering the click of the door as Kakashi locked it behind him. Even in his personal space, she noted, Kakashi was a minimalist. The apartment was well kept with everything in varying in hues of grey, back, and white.

Emiri glanced back at Kakashi and watched as he busied himself in the kitchen. He joined her a moment later in the living room and handed her a glass of water.

"I like your apartment," Emiri complimented, taking a sip of her drink. She then covered her mouth with her hand, stifling a yawn. She was surprised when Kakashi chuckled.

"What are you laughing at?"

"Exactly how much did you drink?"

"Well, I split it with the girls," Emiri frowned in thought, "but I think I drank at least half the bottle."

"Half the bottle?!" His eyebrows rose in surprise as he appraised her body, wondering how someone so thin could hold such a powerful drink.

Emiri could feel Kakashi's eyes linger on the curve of her breasts, and the dip of her waist before the curve of her hips. Emiri felt the blood rush to her face as Kakashi sighed audibly.

"I'll show you the rest of the apartment," said Kakashi, beckoning Emiri to follow him with his hand.

Quietly, Emiri followed Kakashi around—the Hokage's official residence was surprisingly small as he showed her the guest room he had made into a training room, a bathroom, and eventually his room.

Moonlight softened the clean and sharp edges of Kakashi's room, illuminating his full-sized mattress. Emiri walked over to the bed and turned on the bedside lamp as she perched on the edge, sipping her water as Kakashi open and closed his dresser.

A black long-sleeved shirt flew across the room and Emiri clumsily caught it.

"You still have control over your reflexes I see," Kakashi observed drily, humored by her lack of hand-eye coordination. "You can sleep in that if you'd like."

"I could still hold my own in a fight," Emiri said, sticking out her tongue as she held up the shirt to her body.

Kakashi sighed, rubbing the back of his neck again. "Feel free to help yourself to anything in the kitchen, and you can use the other bathroom if you'd like. I'm going to take a shower."

Emiri waited to hear the shower to turn on behind the closed bathroom door before she stood and shimmied out of her outfit, leaving only her black panties, and pulled Kakashi's shirt over her head. Since Kakashi was taller and broader than her, his shirt easily fell to her upper thighs, and the sleeves fell to her knuckles. Emiri attempted to adjust the sleeves and she laughed as they fell again.

By the time she had washed her face, rinsed her mouth, and returned to Kakashi's bed with a full glass of water, Kakashi had left the bathroom. He was dressed in gray sweatpants that were cinched at the ankle and a sleeveless black shirt, the mask pulled over his face as he toweled at his spiky hair.

He glanced up at Emiri, noticing her sitting on his bed, her bare ivory legs crossed at the knee.

"Do you need anything else?" asked Kakashi, before he hung his towel on a hook.

"I think I'm good."

"Alright," Kakashi nodded and cleared his throat. Emiri, in spite of herself, chuckled lightly. She knew none of this would be happening if she was sober. "If you need anything, I'll be on the couch."

"The couch?" Emiri raised an eyebrow as she got to her feet. "I don't want to kick you out of your bed, I should be on the couch."

"Don't worry about it," Kakashi shrugged, as Emiri followed him out of his bedroom as he went to a hallway linen closet to get a pillow and blanket. She watched as Kakashi plopped the pillow down on one end of the couch and shook the blanket out.

"Kakashi." Emiri touched his arm, and Kakashi stilled before he turned and faced her, his dark eyes searching hers. Emiri could feel her heartbeat speed up, and her lips parted. She sucked in a breath when Kakashi's hand went to her hip, and she took a step closer. Her hand went to his chest, over his heart—it was beating just as fast as hers.

Emiri rose to her toes slightly. She knew if she went forward just a little more, her lips would touch Kakashi's.

"Emiri." Kakashi's hand dropped from her hip, and he took a step back; Emiri's head swam from more than her buzz.

"If you won't let me sleep on the couch, then I'm sure we can share your bed," Emiri offered a smile. "Come to bed with me, Kakashi."

"Emiri, I can't."

"Why?" Annoyance bubbled up, and Emiri narrowed her eyes. "I don't understand. You watch me with those eyes, and you touch me like you want me close." Emiri stepped forward and grabbed Kakashi's arm and pulled it toward her, guiding him to graze the bare skin of her thigh beneath his shirt. "You can have me, Kakashi, I want you to."

"I know," said Kakashi. "And I know you're sobering up, but you're still drunk, Emiri, and I won't take advantage of that."

"It's not taking advantage if I'm consenting," Emiri pointed out, noticing Kakashi withdraw his hand from her once more.

"That's a fair point," Kakashi agreed. He sighed. "Earlier this night you told me you want to forget everything. I won't be another way for you to run from you feelings, Emiri."

Emiri took a step back, his words a slap to her face. "What?"

"You are an exceptional shinobi, and an equally good person, and you're running away from everything you feel." Kakashi reached out, as if he would touched Emiri, and immediately, his hand fell back to his side. "Emiri, from the moment I met you, I will admit that spending the night with you has been on my mind more than a few times."

Emiri opened her mouth to speak, but Kakashi continued, cutting her off in his matter-of-fact way.

"And if I were to sleep with you, I can guarantee neither of us would forget it."

Irritation, and the slightly embarrassing feeling of lust made her face turn red. Kakashi reached out once more and put his fingers under Emiri's chin, tipping her head up so their eyes could meet.

"Sleep off the sake, Emiri," Kakashi urged in a kind voice.

"You're running too," Emiri observed, taking a step back, so she and Kakashi no longer made contact. She drew the sleeves of his shirt over her knuckles as she turned to head toward his room. "I don't know why, and I don't know from what, but you're a runner, too."

" _Was_." Kakashi uttered the single syllable, and it reverberated through the quiet of the apartment.

Emiri paused at the bedroom doorway to glance at the man who offered her solace in more ways than he would ever know. "One day I'll stop running," she said. "And one day I hope you'll learn to walk away from the things that hold you back."

Kakashi's eyes widened slightly and Emiri turned on her heel to leave him alone. She crawled into his bed, enveloped by the crispness of clean sheets and softness of his mattress. When she closed her eyes to sleep, images of Neji and Isamu passed through her mind, and through the numbness in her body, Emiri felt her heart break.

No amount of training or alcohol or small distractions could fully numb her to the grief of losing the ones she loved. She knew Kakashi was right; one day she would have to stop running from the things that frightened her.

Emiri turned on her side and stared out the bedroom door she left open. She couldn't hear Kakashi or see him, but she had a feeling he was still awake too. She sighed and closed her eyes, feeling the hands of sleep come for her. There was a time when she was brave, when she stood firmly to face anything that tried to knock her down. Now, all Emiri ever felt like was a coward who ran from her shadows.

Still, Emiri frowned into into Kakashi's pillow. Before she fully fell asleep, her last thought was of her hidden bravery that seemed to come out whenever Kakashi encouraged her.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

 **Thanks for reading!**

 **Your reviews are love!**

 **x**


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